May 12 marks the International Day of Plant Health, a United Nations initiative to raise awareness about how vital healthy plants are to life on Earth.

According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), up to 40 percent of global crops are lost annually due to plant pests and diseases. This not only threatens food security, but also weakens ecosystems and hampers climate resilience.

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The day's theme this year is "The importance of plant health in One Health." It highlights the need to see plant health as part of a broader, interconnected system.

The One Health approach, supported by the World Health Organization and FAO, emphasizes the close links between the health of people, animals, plants and the environment.

Protecting crops from pests and pathogens is not just an agricultural issue – it reduces pesticide use, supports biodiversity and prevents the spread of zoonotic diseases that may originate in disturbed habitats.

The interface of the Huiyan monitoring system for plant pests and diseases. /CMG

Making strong strides in smart plant protection, China last year released the Huiyan system, jointly developed by the Aerospace Information Research Institute under the Chinese Academy of Sciences and other institutions.

This artificial intelligence (AI)-powered system combines in-situ sensing, low-altitude drone monitoring and wide-area remote sensing to track over 20 major crop and forest pests. It enables early warning across scales, supporting both national and global biosecurity.

A robot is harvesting tomatoes at a smart green house in Huzhou City, Zhejiang Province, east China, January 24, 2025. /VCG

Meanwhile, Beijing's smart vegetable protection platform integrates AI tools to precisely detect and respond to pest threats.

Spearheaded by the city's Bureau of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the system has significantly improved control efficiency while reducing chemical use, benefiting both yield and the environment.

Ripe kiwifruits. /VCG

Green control technologies are also taking root at the farm level. Professor Huang Lili's team at Northwest A&F University developed an integrated strategy for controlling apple canker and kiwifruit bacterial canker. Their "winter disease, summer prevention" technique combines forecasting, immunity boosting and targeted intervention.

Already applied widely in key production regions, the method has earned scientific awards and the trust of fruit growers.

Fresh fruits on the shelf. /VCG

Plant health is not an abstract concern – it is vital to our food systems, ecosystems and the society.

As challenges like climate change and biodiversity loss intensify, investing in innovative, sustainable plant protection is more urgent than ever. (CGTN)