Addressing a record crowd at the University of California, Davis, industry pundit Dr. Roberta Cook told members of the Biopesticide Industry Alliance that produce marketers are entering a new age of accountability with point-of-sale scan data. In her presentation on trends in fresh produce marketing, Cook said that sustainability goals are also becoming a bigger factor in produce buyer-seller negotiations.

"Expect big changes in the next five years or so as packer-shippers will have more and better access to data surrounding their sales and product mix"

"Expect big changes in the next five years or so as packer-shippers will have more and better access to data surrounding their sales and product mix," said Cook, Cooperative Extension Specialist in the university's Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics. Cook told more than 100 meeting attendees that chain retailers now account for about 2/3 of all grocery sales in the U.S., and that sustainability records could be "balance-tippers" for suppliers of fresh produce.

Cook stopped short of declaring that incremental value from biopesticides had reached consumers, but indicated that business-to-business value should continue to increase demand. As suppliers seek competitive advantage from their sustainability practices, biopesticides have garnered mounting attention not only in agriculture, but also for public health, home and garden, and other non-crop uses.

To meet the growing demand of information on biopesticides, the BPIA Public Relations and Outreach Committee unveiled its plan to launch a Speakers Bureau and an awareness campaign for the BPIA website later this year.

For additional information about BPIA and the value of biopesticides visit the organization's website at www.biopesticideindustryalliance.org.