Kaboom! Blast-off for EFSA plants comic

Adding a new format to EFSA’s toolbox for risk communications, our four-page comic strip aims to raise awareness about the risks that Xylella fastidiosa poses to plant health. Readers will discover how science is key to developing strategies to deal with a bacteria for which there is currently no cure. We also highlight the importance of cooperation at all levels, including from citizens.

Drawn by illustrator Miriam Rivera, “Fastidious X, the fearsome killer” has been developed by EFSA in collaboration with Miguel Ángel Miranda, an expert at Universidad de las Islas Baleares and a member of EFSA’s Animal Health and Welfare Panel.

The comic is available in English, German and the languages of EU countries most at risk from the bacteria due to their climate, according to EFSA’s 2019 opinion on the risk to plant health posed by Xylella fastidiosa in the European Union (EU): French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Slovenian, Croatian and Greek.

The first page of the comic strip, “Who is Fastidious X, the fearsome killer?”, is now available online. The next instalment will be made available in the coming weeks. Stay tuned! BAM!

Upcoming campaign on plant health

EFSA is also pleased to mark the International Day of Plant Health with news of an upcoming campaign on plant health risks that we’re launching over the summer in cooperation with Member States. Can you bring home the seeds of a plant you fell in love with while travelling abroad? Do you know what a quarantine pest is and why they’re not good news for plants in the EU? If you’re not sure, don’t miss our campaign – we all play a role in protecting plants!