Farmers Need New Tools: A Data-Driven Future for Crop Protection
19 November 2025 Today, the global agriculture system stands at a critical crossroads. Across Europe, tightening regulations are accelerating to phase-out key crop protection products. Reports show that 40% of herbicides and 35% of fungicides stand at risk of non-renewal by 2028. What does this mean for farmers? Challenges that are already showing up on the ground.
In the UK, resistant weeds like blackgrass are costing farmers an estimated £400 million each year. As regulatory pressure and resistance continue to increase, farmers are left with fewer tools to protect their crops and remain productive. But this crossroads also brings opportunity: It’s time to rethink how we discover, validate, and deploy the next generation of crop protection solutions to be faster and more effective.
The Urgency of Innovation in Crop Protection
Despite all the technological progress around us, farmers continue to see a shrinking set of tools to protect their crops. The pace of regulatory change in Europe is not just tightening; it’s fundamentally reshaping the landscape of crop protection.
The previously referenced market analysis estimates that roughly $10.9 billion worth of active substances in the EU market are under review for reauthorization between 2023 and 2028. The herbicide sector is on the front lines, with over 40% of market value deemed at least moderately at risk, and key products are already disappearing. Insecticides and fungicides are close behind, facing 37% and 35% exposure to regulatory loss.
This creates a gap where the industry is losing active ingredients faster than it can replace them. Without new, safe and scalable solutions, the gap between product withdrawal and replacement will only widen, leaving farmers without the tools they need to grow food sustainably.
How AI-Powered Discovery Platforms Can Help
As the crop protection industry faces the pressure of replacing these tools, AI-powered platforms used with human expertise, offer a transformative opportunity much like what we’ve seen in Pharma. In the discovery phase, these platforms can identify promising chemical structures and targets in a fraction of the time required by traditional methods, using predictive modeling and massive datasets. Timelines that once took a decade can now be achieved in months. In some cases, AI-enabled systems have shown up to a 75% reduction in screening time and a 90% decrease in cost compared to conventional approaches.
Beyond discovery, AI can also anticipate safety and toxicity risks earlier in the R&D process, filtering out unsafe compounds before projects advance and costs rise. Advanced models simulate diverse scenarios before testing moves to the lab or field — giving researchers better data, faster.
Bridging the Gap
Shorter timelines and lower costs alone won’t deliver a true paradigm shift. New solutions must perform in real-world settings. As AI accelerates discovery in the lab, success depends on translating breakthroughs into tools that scale and fit seamlessly into farmers’ operations.
At the same time, navigating the current regulatory environments is paramount. New discoveries must be backed by rigorous early-stage validation, and transparent data on safety, efficacy, and environmental impact. AI-powered platforms can help with results by providing comprehensive insights, giving regulators confidence and reducing the risk of setbacks in the later stages of testing. Bridging this gap demands a unified approach, where innovation and practical deployment work together.
Engineering Resilient Systems for the Future
While the current crop protection landscape poses challenges, it also presents an opportunity for transformation that will greatly impact the yields of future generations. With farmers facing increasing challenges like pest resistance, regulatory pressures, and climate change, there has never been a greater need for smarter, safer, and faster innovation. AI-driven discovery methods provide a fresh approach, helping the industry by creating new modes of action and safer chemistries that can overcome resistance without endangering environmental or human health.
These technologies are the foundation of a more resilient and sustainable food system that can withstand future challenges. However, technology can’t cause a paradigm shift by itself.
We need coordination throughout the entire agricultural system. This includes innovators who prioritize transparent and scalable solutions, regulators who support data-driven practices, and farmers who are equipped with the resources and knowledge to implement these new crop protection tools. By investing in technologies that boost yields with less environmental impact, such as AI-powered discovery platforms, we can future-proof global agriculture and usher in a new era of innovation that serves farmers, the market, and the environment.
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