Pre-study collaboration between Holland and Sweden regarding the detection of fruit tree canker with special detection dogs

Dogs' noses could save the apple orchards of the future

Can dogs help stop one of the biggest threats to fruit farming? This project has investigated just that possibility, and the results point to an exciting international collaboration.

Fruit tree canker causes major economic losses for fruit growers and can be difficult to detect in time. Previous LEADER projects showed that specially trained sniffer dogs can actually smell the disease. The new pilot study has therefore investigated how the method can be developed further – and used earlier in the cultivation chain.

Since many rootstocks and grafts for Swedish apple orchards come from Holland, the project has built a network between researchers, fruit growers and dog trainers in both countries. The goal is to be able to train dog handlers in parallel in Sweden and Holland in the future to detect infected trees even before they are planted.

During the preliminary study, collaborations have been established with, among others, Kiviks Musteri and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), while a training plan for special search dogs has been developed.

The preliminary study has led to an application for an international project, also supported by Leader. If the work continues, the dogs' sensitive noses could become a new, sustainable tool for protecting orchards – while creating new opportunities for both research and rural entrepreneurship.

The film below is from the previous leader project "Detection of fruit pests with special search dogs" and was made in May 2023 in connection with "Europe in my region".

The board's assessment

Decision date: 2025-02-20 

The board's justification: Pre-studies are always very good and this will hopefully contribute to important international collaboration in the future, with a major contribution to environmental and sustainability issues.