EXCLUSIVE: Platform10 plants long-term foundation seeds in Europe

by admin | Nov 1, 2025 | Platform10

Last week, I joined 2,000+ delegates for Day 3 of the ABIM 2025 Conference in Basel, Switzerland. It was an awesome 72 hours.

The conference provided me with an in-depth understanding of the landscape for European biocontrol. Whilst the regulatory environment is challenging, the depth of innovation I viewed is staggering. Over 170 exhibitors provided a vast array of biological solutions based on significant science and research input. Evidence that the sector is maturing rapidly.

ABIM also provided me with the opportunity to present Platform10 to conference delegates. I’m still processing the feedback.

I had the pleasure of sharing the Platform10 opportunity with key stakeholders in the European biocontrol market. The challenges that growers face here are similar in nature to many that I experience across the world.

Viewing ‘Europe’ as a single entity might be appropriate in a political context, but not one that applies across agriculture. The opportunities and challenges facing growers in Finland are very different to those facing growers in Spain or Greece. Recognizing those differences has been a key part of my learning.

So, what are the next steps? In the US, Platform10 signed a significant partnership agreement in June with the Biological Products Industry Alliance. As North America’s leading biological industry group, this agreement provides Platform10 with significant technical and logistical support as we build on the first set of field trials in California. In Europe, we have identified a similar partnership opportunity which will bring significant support as we scope out our first European field trials in 2026. I’ll be sharing more details about this over the coming weeks.

Thanks to the team at ABIM and IBMA who made me so welcome in Basel. The week provided a significant platform from which to build. We look forward to making it happen!

Wharf42 & Platform10 exhibit at the BPIA Annual Meeting

by admin | Apr 7, 2025 | Platform10

Wharf42 & Platform10 were delighted to attend and exhibit at last week’s BPIA Annual Meeting in Sacramento.

As well as exhibiting at the event, the BPIA Board hosted a ‘Platform10 Grower Partnership Initiative: Strengthening Industry Collaboration’ breakout session. At the standing room only session, delegates shared views as to how BPIA and its members could in the words of the Board – recruit experts who will be part of a governance team to provide guidance to the strategic development, management, and oversight of this multi-year initiative.

With an existing commitment already secured to support grower-led field trials in California, BPIA’s commitment to support Platform10’s US operations is significant. With a membership that spans the whole breadth of the Biological Products Industry in the US, it is helping create a ‘Coalition of the Willing’ to support growers as they face increasing regulatory and consumer pressures for ‘more biologicals, less chemistry’.

Wharf42 and Platform10 are grateful for the support of the BPIA Board in helping build this significant industry initiative.

Wharf42 signs MOU with Plant & Food Research

by Peter Wren-Hilton | Jun 6, 2024 | Platform10

I was delighted to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with New Zealand’s Plant & Food Research last week. Below is a copy of the Media Release that was published to support the signing.

Plant & Food Research has joined a global initiative looking at finding new ways to control plant pests and diseases.

The Platform10 initiative is an international collaboration that aims to speed up the development of new biological control products for protecting crops against pests and diseases. Plant & Food Research has joined the collaboration, which aims to conduct trials in New Zealand and Australia.

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Plant & Food Research CEO Mark Piper and Peter Wren-Hilton of Wharf42 on behalf of Platform 10.

“Platform 10 was formed to help give growers confidence in adopting new biological alternatives to pest and disease control as global regulations around pesticide use tighten,” says Peter Wren-Hilton. “By providing a mechanism for growers to engage at the research phase, through field trials, we hope to increase understanding and uptake of these new biological products. Plant & Food Research has a strong track record in developing biocontrols and taking them through to the commercialisation phase, so were the ideal partner for us in New Zealand, working in the counter season to our trials in the USA.”

“Growers and marketers are increasingly looking for new ways to manage insect pests and diseases on their land that are more environmentally sustainable,” says Miriam Hall from Plant & Food Research. “We’re excited to be working with Platform10 to support validation of new products at the research stage and help growers understand how they can transition to new management protocols that incorporate biological controls into their crop management.”

Platform10 emerged from the 2023 Salinas Biological Summit where it became apparent that a global framework to accelerate promising biopesticide companies, rigorously assess products, enhance grower confidence, and facilitate market development and adoption was required. Launched in California in November 2023, Platform10 was established to bring growers to the centre of the innovation ecosystem. Platform10 will provide other key stakeholder groups within the specialty crop sector with the opportunity of learning about these problems and challenges at first hand.

Introducing the Platform10 ‘The Grower Talks’ podcast

by Peter Wren-Hilton | Feb 2, 2024 | Platform10

I’m delighted that myself, representing Wharf42, and Dennis Donohue, Director, Western Growers Center for Innovation & Technology have recorded our first 5 episodes of ‘The Grower Talks’ podcast series.

The podcast series is an important element of the Platform10 initiative. It has been designed to provide insights into the ‘less chemistry. more biologicals’ discussion which is currently taking place amongst growers everywhere. As regulators and consumers globally are driving this change, it’s important that the grower stays at the centre of the conversation. That’s the aim of ‘The Grower Talks’ podcast.

To-date, we have interviewed five awesome guests;

• CDFA Secretary Karen Ross
• Pam Marrone
• Carl Casale
• Don Cameron
• Josette Lewis

Recorded live in the Salinas studio, you can view them via YouTube, Spotify or Apple Podcast. And you can view them all here, right now! Platform 10 | The Global Specialty Crop Biological Platform

We are adding new podcasts every 10-14 days to this asset library. If you are looking to learn more about the conversation and the key role that growers will have to adopt these new inputs, it’s one page you should bookmark.