The IV International Biocidal Congress was held at the Susesi Luxury Resort in Antalya in Turkey between 25-29 March 2018. It was judged a great success with around 700 participants, 22 speakers and over 70 technical reports from around the world.
The IV International Biocidal Congress was organised by the Turkey Ministry of Health with the cooperation of Public Health Institution of Turkey, áukurova University and Ege University. It covered biocides in the widest sense – from those relating to pest control right through to disinfectants, laboratory applications and occupational health and safety. Although, judging by the programme, legislation and regulation appeared to be a common thread throughout.
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On the pest control side, talks covered climate change, pests as vectors of disease, insecticide resistance, developments in rodent control and rodenticide resistance.
Europe and CEPA Certified
Europe was well represented with presentations from Bertrand Montmoreau representing the Confederation of European Pest Management Associations (CEPA) who spoke about the role of urban pest management in the protection of public health which, unsurprisingly, lead to EN16636 and CEPA Certified with a view to enhancing this benchmark service standard for European pest management companies.
The use of Aquatain and drones
Stefano Scarponi from the B. L. Group, Italy gave two presentations. The first covered the use of Aquatain AMF and Aquatain Drops products for the physical control of mosquito pupae and larvae. The second dealt with the professional use of drones in pest management. For example for larvicidal treatments with Aquatain, for direct and safe application for wasps’ nests and on extensive and hard to reach areas, such as landfill sites.
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Rodents in Europe
Regarding rodents, from the UK, Rentokil’s Andy Brigham and Robert Shand discussed the past and future of rodent control in Europe. The use historical reliance on rodenticides was covered, along with growing resistance to anticoagulants and the secondary risk to wildlife. Andy introduced the use of alpha-chloralose as an alternative for mice.
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Our thanks from Pest
At Pest we would like to record our thanks to Stefano Scarponi, export sales director for B.L. Group for supplying this report and photos.
Summing up his experiences at the congress, Stefano said: “Turkey is gradually adapting its regulatory standards to align with the European Biocides Directive. It will be more and more a stepping stone between Europe and the Middle East and vice versa.”
Judging by the Congress venue, it wasn’t all work and no play!