About us

An alert service is basically defined as an institution, which gives our agricultural producers an early warning and informs them about incidences of pathogenic agents in time. Usually this is done on the basis of national or regional monitoring (on site observation) and forecasting systems. The data resulting from on-site observation as well as from forecasting systems is analysed and transmitted to the farmers.

Forecasting systems in plant protection describe the development of an infestation by pathogenic agents and enable the identification and evaluation of the critical stage of an epidemic by including important influencing parameters: weather conditions (such as air and soil temperature, humidity, leaf wetness, wind velocity and precipitation) and the production system (such as varieties, N-fertilising, time of sowing, crop rotation, soil cultivation). Thusly by means of economic thresholds one can derive control measures and react in time by using non-chemical or chemical plant protection measures.
 

Since spring of the year 2015 we offer an alert service for diseases and pests in the areas of crop farming, vegetable gardening, fruit growing and viticulture across all crops and nationwide.
The used forecasting models, which are adapted for use in Austria, are internationally renowned and have been well-established for years. Due to observations which are carried out directly on the field on a regular basis or via trapping or sampling our online monitoring maps offer important information, recommendations and warnings on the current situation of plant health. Via our alert service we aim to inform farmers about incidences of diseases and pests in time based on national or regional monitoring and forecasting systems. This contributes to an optimal timing of plant protection measures, to cost reduction and to an increase of efficiency in plant production. Thusly also environmental contamination and the related issue of residues can be reduced.
The alert service is operated by the Agricultural Chamber Austria in the course of an LE-project (Rural Development Project) of the Rural Institute for Advanced Training (LFI) Austria, supported by the EU, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Environment and Water Management (BMLFUW), the provinces and the Agricultural Chambers (LKn). The project is supported by the Lagerhaus (warehouse cooperative) stores and the RWA (Raiffeisen Ware Austria AG, wholesale and service company) as sponsors, and by AGES (Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety), BOKU (University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences Vienna) and the associations as the most important professional project partners.

• creating a nationwide, central, independent and easily accessible interactive online information platform concerning incidences of important pests on crops in Austria on the basis of national or regional monitoring and forecasting systems
• providing information on the alert service platform to optimise decisions on the type and timing of plant protection measures in integrated and organic production in crop farming, vegetable gardening, fruit growing and viticulture
• providing information about the type and timing of plant protection measures in beekeeping
• creating and providing information on further training and dissemination of knowledge about the AS including public relations on the national level
• cost reduction and increase of efficiency in integrated plant production by using the central alert service and specifically reducing the amount of plant protection products used – a factor of success in the “strategy future plant protection”
• transnational, European interlinking of the AS (e.g. via the planned online data base of the ERANET-project C-IPM and other transnational, European initiatives)