Mitchell says that, “for the global good”, the world needs to get away from pesticides and find ways to cut the cost of natural solutions and make them more user-friendly.

If a local clinic cannot identify a disease, the plant is sent as a sample to Cabi headquarters for identification against its catalogue of 38,000 organisms.

Its scientists say they are engaged in looking for nature-based solutions. It claims to have reached 60 million smallholder farmers since 2011.Ībout 40% of food production worldwide is lost to pests and diseases, and one of Cabi’s strengths is its ability to spot trends in plant diseases. The lab, which is partly funded by the UK, combines research with practical advice, holding online clinics in locations including Kenya and Pakistan. The aim of the summit is “to demonstrate and interrogate the huge contribution that science, research and British academic institutions are making to the global problem of starvation and malnutrition”, he says. If we tackle food disease naturally, it is better for the environment, the soil, people Andrew Mitchell “It is going to come up with some very practical proposals,” Mitchell believes.

Mitchell’s visit to the Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International (Cabi) comes ahead of a global food security summit in London next week, hosted by the UK government.

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