Insect Pest Control
We assist FAO and IAEA Member States in the implementation of environmentally-friendly and sustainable methods to control major insect pests of crops and veterinary and human importance through strategic and applied research, technology transfer, capacity building, policy
advice, and information management.
Our efforts focus on an area-wide integrated pest management approach, by the use of the sterile insect technique (SIT), to enhance food security, introduce sustainable agricultural systems, reduce losses and pesticide use, preserve biological diversity, and facilitate international trade in food and agricultural commodities by promoting the development and application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Standards.
Highlights
Eradication of Cactus Moth Outbreaks from Isla Contoy, Mexico.
The Mexican Government has officially announced that the Cactus Moth Cactoblastis cactorum, a serious threat to all prickly pear cactus species, has been eradicated from the island of Contoy, in the Mexican Caribbean.
Full Story »
Balkan States Consider Sterile Insect Technique Against Mediterranean Fruit Fly.
Fruit farmers in Southern Europe have been struggling for decades in a losing battle against the Mediterranean fruit fly, or Medfly, which is one of the world´s most destructive farm pests, since it lays its eggs in fruit and vegetables.
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Eradication of Cactus Moth Outbreaks from Caribbean islands of Mexico.
The Mexican Government has officially announced that the Cactus Moth Cactoblastis cactorum, a serious threat to all prickly pear cactus species, has been eradicated from the island of Mujeres and island of Contoy, in the Mexican Caribbean, two
years after the pest was first detected. Full Story »
No Love for Deadly Mosquitoes.
In steamy sites ranging from Sudan to Tahiti, Mozambique to the United States, researchers are studying the sex life of the male mosquito - in order to halt reproduction.Why? Mosquitoes can be deadly carriers of disease, including malaria and yellow fever. Full Story »
Screw Worm Outbreak in Yemen.
An outbreak of the insidious ´screw worm´ fly in Yemen, is threatening livelihoods, in a country where rearing livestock is a traditional way of life. In recent weeks, a Ministerial delegation was at the IAEA in Vienna, Austria, to turn to the international community for emergency assistance to
fight the deadly pest. Full Story »
Tacna and Moquegua Regions in Southern Peru Declared Fruit Fly Free Areas.
The Animal and Plant Health Service (SENASA) of Peru, a decentralized public institution of the Ministry of Agriculture, has informed that Peru, after more than 20 years of dedicated efforts
has achieved the eradication of very destructive horticultural fruit fly pests ... Full Story »