Flax fibre is a high value-added and environmentally friendly product in the textile sector. Europe currently produces 80% of the world's flax fibre resource and the Franco-Belgian zone has a particularly unique know-how in this field. Changes in climatic conditions, the decrease in the effectiveness of plant protection products and the pressure exerted by pathogens could jeopardise the economy and the social links generated around the production and exploitation of flax fibre in these territories. The PATHOFLAX project aims to secure this regional agronomic excellence by coming up with eco-compatible solutions adapted to the challenges already facing the flax fibre sector. Over the past 10 years, a fungal disease called wilt caused by a soil-borne pathogenic fungus, Verticillium dahliae, has emerged in both France and Belgium and could cause fibre yield losses in flax crops. Currently, flax growers have limited means of action against wilt, no effective plant protection control measures and no resistant flax varieties have been identified. In this context, the PATHOFLAX project has several objectives including (i) the carrying out of an epidemiological study into this disease in all territories where flax fibre is grown, (ii) the study and implementation of approaches based on the stimulation of the plant's natural defences by non-infectious Verticillium strains or natural elicitors, approaches that respect the environment and finally (iii) the use of natural flax biodiversity to identify varieties resistant to the disease. This information is made available to farmers.