NOVATERRA is an EU-funded H2020 project focused on ensuring food security and healthy food access for the increasing population. Through a series of case studies in Mediterranean olive groves and vineyards, the project aims to understand whether it is possible to maintain current yields and quality in Europe and in other regions while eliminating or significantly reducing the use of contentious plant protection products (also known as pesticides).
Since the Green Revolution in the 1950s and 60s, crop production in Europe and around the world has largely relied on plant protection products also known as PPPs (chemical fertilisers and pesticides), irrigation and mechanisation methods. As the population increases, one of the largest challenges facing humanity is ensuring food security and healthy food access while also maintaining a sustainable environment, including no further land increase for agricultural usage.