The United Nations has designated May 12 as International Plant Health Day to raise global awareness that protecting plant health can help eliminate hunger, reduce poverty, protect biodiversity and the environment, and enhance economic development. IPPH is an important legacy of the International Year of Plant Health 2020.
International Plant Health Day has been celebrated internationally since 2022. On this day, the UN draws attention to the importance of plant health, an aspect that directly affects the quality of the food we consume. Raising awareness around the world will subsequently enable action to be taken to protect the environment and biodiversity, including stimulating economic development.
In 2026, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has named the event in Rome “Plant Biosafety for Food Security and Nutrition” to commemorate the occasion.
Although plants are vulnerable to pests and diseases and up to 40% of crops are destroyed each year, they make up 80% of the food we consume and produce 98% of the oxygen we breathe. The celebration of the day supports efforts to promote sustainable agricultural practices, FAO said.
Plant pests have a significant negative impact on the environment and cause substantial economic losses by affecting crops and forests. Their presence leads to increased consumption of pesticides, which pollutes soil and water resources. At the same time, pests reduce biodiversity by destroying native species and increase the burden on public health budgets, given the high costs of controlling these pests and the diseases they carry. Statistics vary by region and pest species, but global reports indicate annual losses of billions of dollars in the agricultural sector due to plant pests and diseases.
Moldova is on trend
In the Republic of Moldova, phytosanitary measures applied to prevent the entry and spread of pests on the territory of the country are regulated under plant protection cooperation agreements and international conventions to which the state is a party. These include the International Plant Protection Convention, to which the Republic of Moldova acceded in 2000 by Law No. 926/2000, as well as the Convention for the Establishment of the European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization, ratified in 2006 by Law No. 16/2006.
The national plant protection system was harmonized with the European phytosanitary requirements through the adoption of Law No. 16/2006. Law 422/2023 on plant pest protection measures. National by-laws complement this legislative framework and ensure harmonized and effective application of phytosanitary requirements.
