Tag: Climate change
International Pest Control – September/October 2025 – Vol 67, Nr.5
The Human Genome Project took 13 years from launch to completion and cost an estimated $2.7 billion. Now, using massively parallel sequencing, the task can be completed in just hours: my friendly AI says the record is 7.5 hours although more normally it takes weeks. Now gene sequencing is used in all parts of our […]
Impact of climate change on subterranean termite
Termite control is a major enterprise in most parts of the world, undertaken to protect structures and properties. Historically the interaction of termites and humans probably started when termites attacked crops and manmade structures containing cellulosic material. This interaction has now taken a shape resembling a confrontation, thanks to extensive land use by humans for […]
International Pest Control – May/June 2025 – Vol 67, Nr.3
Starting to sound like a scratched record – a metaphor that only works for some – late again, but better late… Once again climate change has threaded its way through this issue. Even if you are in denial about it being caused by human activities you can’t ignore the real-world impacts. IFAD are investing US$9.2m […]
International Pest Control – January/February 2025 – Vol 67, Nr.1
Preserving harvested crops and ensuring the best price goes to the farmer is critical to feeding the world’s population. In Kenya the focus is on reducing crop loss of up to 40% by introducing affordable and community operated cold chain facilities. In Australia grain and vegetable growers are joining forces to invest nearly $25 million […]
International Pest Control – May/June 2024 – Vol 66, Nr.3
I’ll start with an apology to those of you who were anticipating a special feature on Vertebrate Pests. It turns out this was a bad choice on my part as we had no-one stepping up to write articles and perhaps this topic may be regarded as old hat.What is definitely not out of fashion is […]
International Pest Control – January/February 2024 – Vol 66, Nr.1
AI to predict yields, ag tech to cut billions of tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, a database to help the understanding of the problems of European forests, a futuristic agricultural solar park – agri-PV – and NASA spotting grape disease from space before it is spotted on the ground. There seems no end to the […]
International Pest Control – September/October 2023 – Vol 65, Nr.5
“In a world of plenty, it is outrageous that people continue to suffer and die from hunger. Starving food systems of investment means, quite literally, starving people.” UN Secretary General António Guterres’ words, opening the UN Food Systems Summit. In September 2015 the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) were adopted and December 2015 saw the […]
International Pest Control – July/August 2023 – Vol 65, Nr.4
At a time when many parts of Europe and North America are “boiling” or burning, other parts of the world are submerged under water and the Atlantic to the west of Ireland is suffering a Marine Heatwave classified by NOAA as Category 5 (‘Beyond Extreme’) with sea surface temperatures as high as 4-5°C above average, […]
