POMATO Project Showcased at Major Polish Scientific Conference on Plant Protection
On 11–12 February 2026, the POMATO project was presented at the 65th Scientific Session of the Institute of Plant Protection – National Research Institute (IOR–PIB), held at the IOR Conference Centre in Poznań, Poland.
The event brought together approximately 400 on-site participants, with additional online viewers following the conference remotely, making it an important opportunity to increase the visibility of the project among the Polish and international plant protection community.
The project was showcased through a poster presentation, attended by Artur Paszkowski from PIN, with the involvement of Włodzimierz Pezewodowski from IHAR. The poster introduced POMATO as an integrated, EU-funded research initiative addressing major bacterial threats affecting potato and tomato crops through international cooperation.
The presentation highlighted how the project combines advanced research methods, digital tools, and sustainable approaches to strengthen plant health and support early disease management. It also underlined the importance of multidisciplinary collaboration in developing comprehensive and resilient crop protection solutions capable of responding to current and emerging plant health challenges.
The conference audience included a broad spectrum of stakeholders, such as conventional and organic potato and tomato growers, research and academic institutions, the technology and innovation sector, policy makers and regulatory bodies, environmental organizations, end consumers, and the wider public. This broad participation helped ensure that the project’s objectives and expected impacts were communicated to both scientific and non-scientific audiences.
Participation in the conference and poster session enabled direct interaction with researchers, plant health authorities, and industry stakeholders, generating discussions and follow-up contacts for possible future collaboration. The online transmission of the event further expanded outreach beyond physical attendees, while post-event communication through institutional websites and social media contributed to continued dissemination.
The presentation of POMATO at the 65th Scientific Session of IOR–PIB represented an important dissemination opportunity, strengthening awareness of the project and confirming the relevance of its work in the field of plant health and sustainable crop protection.
>> Further details are available in the official conference proceedings, where the abstract of the POMATO poster presentation has been published and can be accessed here.
