International Pest News
International news in brief – March/April 2018
DE: Bayer to sell vegetable seeds business Bayer is in exclusive talks with BASF on the sale of its entire vegetable seeds business. On 13 Oct 2017, Bayer had already agreed to sell selected Crop Science businesses to BASF for EUR 5.9bn This first package covers Bayer’s global glufosinate-ammonium business and the related LibertyLink technology […]
International news in brief – January/February 2018
UK: Drone technology benefits from the use of motion plastics Effective pest control can often be difficult, especially if surrounding areas must be protected. The FitoStinger drone was developed for this purpose by the Technology & Advances Solutions (TSA) Centre in Spain. It is equipped with an extendable arm, which allows for precise spraying […]
International news in brief – November/December 2017
TZ: Biocontrol program manages Fall Armyworm A programme developed by Russell IPM has proven to manage Fall Armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda) in Tanzania successfully — reducing damage in winter maize to less than 5% compared to pesticides at 25-30%. The research by TPRI, Arusha, Tanzania was conducted in three regions in Tanzania in winter maize crops […]
International news in brief – September/October 2017 issue
UK: Ubiqutek™ launches professional RootWave™ hand-weeder Featured at last year’s October Amenity Conference, Ubiqutek has launched the RootWave Pro, an award winning professional hand-weeder designed to spot weed and treat invasive species. The RootWave Pro zaps weeds with electricity and is presented as an alternative to chemical use. Generating heat directly within the weed ensures […]
Public Health
River Blindness – A Neglected Disease Transmitted by Blackflies (Simulium spp.)
The World Health Organization (WHO) operated a prolonged campaign to control the vector of river blindness (Onchcerciasis) in the Savannah of nine West African countries from 1974, with the primary objective of controlling the disease and secondly to enable economic development of the area. The constant biting of flies, especially in the cooler early morning […]
What is the Problem with Glyphosate?
Glyphosate is the pesticide with the greatest sales worldwide. It has attracted attention from regulators and the public; the latter because it was one of the first and is the most widely used herbicide for genetically modified (GM) crops. It has been used in the vast majority the countries on the planet for decades since […]
World Pest Awareness Day
The 6th June 2017 has been declared World Pest Awareness Day to serve as a reminder of how professional pest management helps protect our quality of life. Three global pest management associations; The Confederation of European Pest Management Associations (CEPA), the Federation of Asian and Oceania Pest Managers’ Association (FAOPMA) and the @NationalPestManagementAssn (USA), have […]
Pests & Our Pets: Keeping Companion Animals Safer
With all the damage that pests can cause to businesses, agriculture and even the environment itself, sometimes it’s simply a necessity to use things like pesticides and other ways to keep their populations at bay. But rather than waiting until they’ve become a problem, either in our homes or towards our pets, it’s better to […]
Agriculture
Advances in Precision Farming Technologies for Crop Protection
Precision farming involves the collection of data by observation and measurement, and the subsequent response. Sensing is key to the collection of data; whether this is remote from space by satellites, by aircraft or drones, or by proximal sensors used on the ground, mounted on vehicles or otherwise. Responses are increasingly automated and data are […]
Integrated Management of Soybean Pests: The Example of Brazil
Soybean [Glycine max] is the most commercialized agricultural product in Brazil, which stands out in the world ranking as the second largest producer of this protein and oilseed crop. Cultivated throughout the country and with prospects of expanding into the North and Northeast, it has become the most important commodity in Brazilian agribusiness. Among the […]
World Pest Awareness Day
The 6th June 2017 has been declared World Pest Awareness Day to serve as a reminder of how professional pest management helps protect our quality of life. Three global pest management associations; The Confederation of European Pest Management Associations (CEPA), the Federation of Asian and Oceania Pest Managers’ Association (FAOPMA) and the @NationalPestManagementAssn (USA), have […]
Using Green Vaccination to Brighten the Agronomic Future
Crop plants host a variety of pests and diseases that can ultimately reduce agricultural productivity. Current methods of pest and disease control depend largely on pesticides. However, the use of chemicals alone is increasingly regarded as unsustainable due to the development of resistance and the introduction of stricter European regulation. There is a need, therefore, […]
Forestry
World Pest Awareness Day
The 6th June 2017 has been declared World Pest Awareness Day to serve as a reminder of how professional pest management helps protect our quality of life. Three global pest management associations; The Confederation of European Pest Management Associations (CEPA), the Federation of Asian and Oceania Pest Managers’ Association (FAOPMA) and the @NationalPestManagementAssn (USA), have […]
Cabbage Skunk weed Lysichitum americanum in wet woodlands: biology; invasiveness and control in the UK
The invasive Cabbage Skunk weed, Lysichitum americanum, is native to swamps and along streams in woodlands in the north-west of North America. It is named due to its distinctive “skunky” odour that it emits when it blooms and attracts its pollinators – scavenging flies and beetles. The name is also used for the eastern skunk […]
Current and future Insect Threats to UK Forestry
Introduction The beginning of the 21st century has seen an unprecedented assault on the UK by invasive forest pests and diseases (Defra 2013; Figure 1). Some of these new pests and diseases have attracted much media attention and have increased political awareness, e.g. the large scale death of larch caused by Phytophothora ramorum and ash […]
Tree care package to preserve iconic palm trees
A new Syngenta tree care package could now save southern Europe’s iconic palm trees from the devastating effects of the Red Palm Weevil (Rhynchophorus ferrugineus). The treatment, which involves direct micro-injection of a targeted insecticide into the trunk of affected trees, has been fully approved in France and granted emergency approval to tackle the increasing […]
Special Features
Using pesticides in amenity areas
Using pesticides in amenity areas such as parks, golf courses and other areas open to the public has to conform to the EU regulations in a similar manner to protecting crops on farms. The main difference is that there are a diverse range of spray targets which frequently have to be treated using manually carried […]
Managing the problem of leatherjacket at UK airports
UK airports recently faced an issue due to the removal of a chemical, or to be precise the lack of knowledge regarding its avail- ability. The application of European EC Regulation 2009/128/EC, applied by the UK, led to the nationwide withdrawal of Chlorpyrifos. However, since the 1960’s chlorpyrifos had helped in the control of larvae […]
Barriers to the adoption of GM crops
The use of genetic engineering techniques in agriculture and food production is seen as an exciting and valuable development by many. They welcome the improvements in production efficiency that they bring to farmers and the enhanced nutritional value that can benefit consumers. Others however, have objected strongly, raising environmental, food safety, and ethical concerns. A […]
Improved monitoring and potential control for the Asian Tiger mosquito
Aedes albopictus, also known as the Asian tiger mosquito, flourishes in a variety of habitats including residential and agricultural areas. It is present on 6 of the world’s 7 continents and is a competent vector of at least 22 different arboviruses including all 4 serotypes of dengue. Current control efforts for Aedes albopictus include source […]
Horticulture Amenity
World Pest Awareness Day
The 6th June 2017 has been declared World Pest Awareness Day to serve as a reminder of how professional pest management helps protect our quality of life. Three global pest management associations; The Confederation of European Pest Management Associations (CEPA), the Federation of Asian and Oceania Pest Managers’ Association (FAOPMA) and the @NationalPestManagementAssn (USA), have […]
The makings of a turf weed
Professional turf is a close-knit grass sward with seemingly few openings and opportunities for invasion by weeds, but a surprisingly large number of plant species continue to invade, establish and grow. Turf weed achievement is governed by a range botanical attributes alongside breaches in turf integrity that allow these dicotyledonous (broad leaved) plants to exploit […]
Managing weeds on railway lines
The Weedfree-on-Track Spray Train was created with environmental sustainability at the forefront of its design. In an ever demanding market where companies are being driven to reduce their carbon footprint and become ‘greener’, the spray train was designed to not only achieve current demands, but to also be future proof for an ever evolving market. […]
Using pesticides in amenity areas
Using pesticides in amenity areas such as parks, golf courses and other areas open to the public has to conform to the EU regulations in a similar manner to protecting crops on farms. The main difference is that there are a diverse range of spray targets which frequently have to be treated using manually carried […]
Latest Posts
International news in brief – March/April 2018
DE: Bayer to sell vegetable seeds business Bayer is in exclusive talks with BASF on the sale of its entire vegetable seeds business. On 13 Oct 2017, Bayer had already agreed to sell selected Crop Science businesses to BASF for EUR 5.9bn This first package covers Bayer’s global glufosinate-ammonium business and the related LibertyLink technology […]
International Pest Control – January/February 2018 – Vol 60, Nr.1
Welcome to 2018. This year, International Pest Control magazine is celebrating 60 years in print. It is an honour to be responsible for editing a publication that was first produced before I was born and that I remember reading as a student. In December, I was pleased to have overseen my 30th issue and ‘celebrated’ […]
International news in brief – January/February 2018
UK: Drone technology benefits from the use of motion plastics Effective pest control can often be difficult, especially if surrounding areas must be protected. The FitoStinger drone was developed for this purpose by the Technology & Advances Solutions (TSA) Centre in Spain. It is equipped with an extendable arm, which allows for precise spraying […]
International Pest Control – November/December 2017 – Vol 59, Nr.6
Our strapline at International Pest Control magazine is ‘because pests recognise no national boundaries’ and never has a phrase been so relevant when considering invasive pests. An invasive species is an organism that is not native to a specific location and that has a tendency to spread to a degree to cause damage to the […]
International news in brief – November/December 2017
TZ: Biocontrol program manages Fall Armyworm A programme developed by Russell IPM has proven to manage Fall Armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda) in Tanzania successfully — reducing damage in winter maize to less than 5% compared to pesticides at 25-30%. The research by TPRI, Arusha, Tanzania was conducted in three regions in Tanzania in winter maize crops […]
A new biological control method for the common furniture beetle with Spathius exarator
Dr. Judith Auer, Alexander Kassel APC AG, Allround Pest Control AG, Ostendstr. 132, D-90482 Nuremberg, Germany; judith.auer@apc-ag.de. alexander.kassel@apc-ag.de Abstract: Biological control using beneficial organisms is getting more and more important in the Integrated Pest Management. A new and effective strategy in the fight against the most common timber pest species in churches and museums, the […]
