Location: Commodity Protection and Quality Research
Project Number: 2034-30400-001-000-D
Project Type: In-House Appropriated
Start Date: Dec 7, 2025
End Date: Dec 6, 2030
Objective:
Objective 1: Develop procedures that are acceptable to industry and regulatory partners that reduce the incidence of pests in fresh and durable commodities prior to harvest, with emphasis on innovative nonchemical alternatives including Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) and promoting reduced-risk insecticides for insect control.
Sub-objective 1A: Develop innovative strategies emphasizing nonchemical alternatives and reduced-risk insecticides for control of navel orangeworm (NOW) to reduce damage and minimize nontarget impacts on environmental quality.
Sub-objective 1B: Characterize the environmental and host factors associated with NOW damage in almond and pistachio orchards to eliminate or mitigate their impact in support of the use of reduced-risk insecticide management strategies and/or nonchemical strategies such as SIT or mating disruption.
Sub-objective 1C: Develop innovative molecular techniques to improve control of NOW as well as newly invasive and/or emerging pests.
Sub-objective 1D: Develop improved monitoring methods to minimize chemical treatment requirements for key lepidopteran and dipteran pests.
Objective 2: Develop new and improved methyl bromide alternatives for postharvest processes such as commodity handling procedures and phytosanitary and quarantine treatments, which support horticultural trade and contribute to global food security and food safety while maintaining commodity quality.
Sub-objective 2A: Develop novel postharvest approaches to protect fresh and durable commodities from arthropod pests, while maintaining or improving commodity quality.
Sub-objective 2B: Develop postharvest technologies for early detection, monitoring and trapping of insect pests.
Objective 3: Conduct research to ensure that new and improved methyl bromide alternatives comply with the environmental, human health, sanitary, and phytosanitary standards at the local, state, national, and international levels so that these treatments can be adopted.
Sub-objective 3A: Develop and apply methodology to understand, and then minimize, the exposure of novel or existing chemical treatments to applicators, workers, bystanders, and environments.
Sub-objective 3B: Characterize agrochemical use strategies and develop novel technologies to ensure that residues are compliant with importer and domestic food tolerances.
Approach:
The project goal is maintaining or improving the quality of west coast horticultural commodities in order to protect existing market share or expand it through improved systems approaches and/or developing new ones. This complex project contains three objectives, eight sub-objectives, and 11 research goals.
The research focus of Objective 1 is preharvest, and although three sub-objectives and four research goals target the navel orangeworm (NOW), the primary moth pest of California tree nuts, these goals are applicable to other pests, including the newly discovered nitidulid beetle Carpophilus truncatus . Research includes assessing sterile insect technique and molecular technology, as well as improving existing management schemes through changes in application timing and improved coverage. The final sub-objective in Objective 1 seeks to improve the monitoring and control of a variety of pests using camera traps and machine learning as well as improving existing attractants for dipteran pests.
The research focus of Objective 2 is the improvement and development of methyl bromide alternatives. It contains two sub-objectives and two research goals, focusing on a range of postharvest pests as well as the nitidulid beetle C. truncatus. The first sub-objective and research goal has five phases and seeks to quantify fumigant dose mortality relationships at a variety of temperatures. The focus of the second sub-objective is the development of better technologies for trapping and monitoring insect pests of stored products as well as C. truncatus in the orchard.
The research focus of Objective 3, which contains two sub-objectives and two research goals, is to ensure that new and improved methyl bromide alternatives comply with the environmental, human health, sanitary, and phytosanitary standards at the local, state, national, and international levels so that these treatments can be adopted. The research conducted for the first sub-objective will develop and apply methodology to understand, and then minimize, the exposure of novel or existing chemical treatments to applicators, workers, bystanders, and environments. In order to achieve this sub-objective new methods will be developed to quantify the off gassing of postharvest fumigants. The focus of the second sub-objective is to characterize agrochemical use strategies and develop novel technologies to ensure that residues are compliant with importer and domestic food tolerances. These data can then be used to support domestic and international registration of agrochemicals uses to control pests.