International Day of Plant Health 2025: Celebrating the vital role of plants in One Health

San Salvador, 12 May 2025. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) joined the global community to celebrate the International Day of Plant Health (IDPH) on 12 May, in San Salvador, El Salvador. The event, hosted by the International Regional Organization for Plant and Animal Health (OIRSA), was a hybrid high-level gathering attended by over 800 participants both virtually and in-person.

Why plant health matters

IDPH is a perfect opportunity to raise awareness about the importance of protecting the world’s plants, to help end hunger, reduce poverty, protect biodiversity and the environment and boost economic prosperity. This year’s theme “The importance of plant health in One Health”, underscores the vital relationship between human, animal, environmental and plant health.

“When we protect plant health, we are safeguarding our food security, our biodiversity, and the well-being of people and the planet”, said QU Dongyu, FAO Director-General, in his video message during the opening ceremony of the high-level event. "This year, FAO celebrates its 80th anniversary – eight decades dedicated to achieving a world free of hunger – and plant health is central to this mission", he added.

The Director-General highlighted FAO’s work in supporting countries through developing and implementing phytosanitary standards; strengthening national and regional capacities, harnessing the latest technology and innovation and leveraging partnerships.

Speakers included Oscar Dominguez, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock in El Salvador, Her Excellency Elena Suazo Torres, Secretary of State for Agriculture and Livestock, Honduras, Raúl Antonio Rodas Suazo, Executive Director, OIRSA and Emilia González, FAO Assistant Representative in El Salvador. In her video message, Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Rigoberta Menchú Tum emphasized the significant role of Indigenous Peoples’ communities in plant health. Yurdi Yasmi, Director of Plant Production and Protection Division at FAO, was the event moderator.

©OIRSA

Innovation in plant health

Plant health experts emphasised the role of plants in One Health and demonstrated how technological innovation and scientific research support plant health. OIRSA, a regional plant protection organisation and long-term partner of FAO and the IPPC, showcased the world’s first 3D simulation room for pest outbreaks. Developed in collaboration with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), this room uses artificial intelligence and state-of-the-art equipment such as an oculus, computers, advanced software, helmets and controllers for training phytosanitary experts in secure virtual environments, providing immersive experiences that mimic real-life pest outbreak scenarios.

This virtual reality training allows phytosanitary specialists to replicate pest outbreak scenarios, evaluate pest dispersal and test containment and eradication strategies in a safe and controlled setting. As a result, phytosanitary professionals can respond to emergencies quickly and accurately, optimize resources, safeguard agricultural production, ecosystems and public health and strengthen national plant protection organizations’ technical capacity. (Watch a demonstration of the 3D experience here). OIRSA’s other innovations include the Moscamed project to manage fruit flies, drones to monitor and spray, 3D printers, fumigation services and dog units.

Screen shots from the video demonstrating how the 3D simulation room works

“By showcasing innovation and advanced technology in plant production and protection, OIRSA aims to motivate other countries in the region to adopt technology to protect plant health”, said Raúl Antonio Rodas Suazo, Executive Director, OIRSA.

Sarah Brunel, Officer-in-charge for day-to-day matters at the IPPC Secretariat, presented the IPPC Plant Health Campus. Developed with the FAO elearning Academy and supported by the European Union, the platform offers multi-lingual, free, certified e-learning courses, IPPC guides and tools​ to enhance the knowledge and skills of phytosanitary professionals worldwide. The courses, developed by international experts, facilitate self-paced learning.

Shoki Al-Dobai, Team Leader of FAO Locusts and other Transboundary Plant Pests and Diseases, highlighted technological innovations in managing locust species as pests with economic impact.

Ghislain Tepa-Yotto from the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture in Ibadan, Nigeria, presented the science behind the nexus of plant health within One Health.

In his presentation “Importance of anthropology in plant health: The twilight of insects”, Luis Arrioja, Rector of the College of Michoacan, Mexico, emphasized the need to integrate social sciences and humanities with natural sciences to better understand and address plant health issues.

At the high-level event, Spyridoula Dimitropoulou was announced as the winner of the European Phytosanitary Research and Coordination network (Euphresco) 2025 Plant Health Day video contest for the video, "Saving Greece’s Plane Trees: Digital Technologies for Early Detection of Ceratocystis platani". The IPPC and EUPHRESCO have been partnering for three years to promote plant health research through the annual video contest.

IDPH celebrated worldwide

From high-level visits, outreach activities, webinars, news articles, ministerial statements, blogs, social media campaigns, media interviews and exhibitions - the International Day of Plant Health 2025 reflected the remarkable innovative and scientific advances in plant health, demonstrated collaboration and emphasized the importance of collective commitment to protect plant health.

Explore more:

IDPH website

Video: Plant health and One Health

Video: OIRSA celebrations in El Salvador

Sarah Brunel and Carlos Urias’ TV interview on El Salvador’s TCS channel