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Pathogens, weeds, and invertebrates cause significant cultivated plants losses worldwide. Plant protection is necessary to protect our crops. It makes its value and benefit evident for agriculture and forestry, as well as for horticulture, particularly by reducing yield losses and securing the quality of crops. It also provides a substantial overall benefit to society: contributes to securing business farms' incomes in agriculture, forestry and horticulture, and thus also to the securing of employment in rural areas. It is an important factor in enhancing the efficiency of crop production on open land and in securing the harmlessness of these products in terms of health.

The 2006 Thematic Strategy on the sustainable use of pesticides led to a new legislative framework for the approval and use of pesticides. As part of this strategy, Directive 2009/128/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council was adopted on 21 October (named SUD), establishing a framework for Community action to achieve the sustainable use of pesticides by reducing the risks and impacts of pesticide use on human health and the environment and promoting the use of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and of alternative approaches or techniques such as non-chemical alternatives to pesticides.

The EC has been closely following implementation of SUD at MSs level. Considerable progress has been made and nowadays all MSs have adopted their NAPs. Though, the assessment outcomes disclose MSs Implementation under the SUD indicates there is a huge diversity in their completeness and coverage and MSs should improve their plans, as for example, should include measurable targets, in order to provide a clear picture of the extent of SUD implementation.

Special interest and ambitions are focused on the application and assessment of IPM principles and of alternative approaches or techniques such as non-chemical alternatives to pesticides in order to reduce dependency on the use of pesticides. MSs have not yet set clear criteria in order to ensure that the general principles of IPM are implemented by all professional users. Compliance with the principles of IPM at individual grower level is not being systematically checked.

To continue moving towards the better implementation of sustainable use practices and directive provisions, training for the actors involved in developing policies and guidelines, control monitoring and reporting activities is addressed as key toll and a priority for the EC efforts.