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This R&D project, led by Terres Inovia, is part of the PARSADA initiative. Terres Inovia held its kickoff meeting on March 5 in Paris, attended by funders, project partners, and leaders of other PARSADA projects closely linked to ALTIFAST. Supported by government agencies, the project aims to gain a better understanding of certain species of flea beetles affecting rapeseed, radish, flax, and hemp in order to provide practical solutions for controlling these insects.
PARSADA: Finding Alternatives to the Withdrawal of Chemical Solutions
What alternatives will be available to best protect crops in the face of the phased withdrawal of active ingredients? “The phased withdrawal of certain active ingredients, the rise of pest resistance, and the effects of climate change are making crop pest management increasingly complex,” explains Franck Duroueix, head of the Inputs and Biocontrol Unit at Terres Inovia.
To ensure farmers are not left without solutions, PARSADA (Strategic Action Plan for Anticipating the Potential European Withdrawal of Active Ingredients and the Development of Alternative Techniques for Crop Protection) was designed to develop a range of operational solutions to address potential deadlock situations. By the end of 2025, nearly 180 million euros had already been committed to this work.
ALTIFAST: New Strategies for Controlling Flea Beetles
The ALTIFAST project is part of this collective effort to develop new strategies for controlling: flea beetles (Aphtona euphorbiae and Longitarsus parvulus) on fiber flax, the winter flea beetle (Psylliodes chrysocephala) on rapeseed, crucifer flea beetles (Phyllotreta sp.) on seed radish, and the hemp flea beetle (Psylliodes attenuata) on seed hemp.
Led by the Terres Inovia technical institute, it brings together Arvalis, Fnams, Anamso, and the Eure-et-Loir Chamber of Agriculture. The project also involves the Hemp’it cooperative, the EcoEntomology Laboratory in Orléans, the seed companies Vilmorin-Mikado and Vikima, as well as about a hundred regional stakeholders, including advisory bodies and chambers of agriculture, as part of the follow-up to the Phosmet Phase-out Plan.
Four pillars of research
Over the next five years, the project will focus on four key areas:
• Expanding knowledge of the biology and ecology of
beetles• Developing
plant-level solutions• Developing management strategies at the plot and regional levels
• Transferring and implementing these findings in the field
A connection to other projects
ALTIFAST is also part of an ecosystem of complementary projects.
For instance, methodological exchanges will be conducted with the COLEOFAST project (led by FNAMS) and the TAUPIFAST project (led by Fn3PT), which target other problematic beetles in the seed and field crop sectors, for example.
Synergies are also expected with the trans-sectoral projects led by INRAE: ASAP, dedicated to studying pest adaptation to control methods; Metaserv, which develops tools for selecting and deploying companion plants; and ARDECO, which aims to develop solutions centered on chemical ecology. A strong link will be maintained with the Déphy EXPE CONCERTO project, led by Terres Inovia, to evaluate combined control strategies at the plot and regional levels
.
Project updates will be shared as they become available through all available channels: press, website, webinars, technical meetings in the field or in meeting rooms…
The first event to note is the presentation of the findings from the Phosmet Phase-Out Plan on March 24, 2026, which targets the winter flea beetle on rapeseed (and the terminal bud weevil).
The phased-out of certain active ingredients, the rise in pest resistance, and the effects of climate change are making crop pest management increasingly complex