Location: Tropical Crop and Commodity Protection Research
Project Number: 2040-30400-002-008-I
Project Type: Interagency Reimbursable Agreement
Start Date: Jun 1, 2026
End Date: May 31, 2027
Objective:
The project supports development and implementation of biological control strategies for coffee berry borer (Hypothenemus hampei) in Hawaii through establishment, mass rearing, release, and evaluation of a parasitoid wasp (Phymasticus coffea).
Approach:
1. Establish and maintain laboratory colonies of coffee berry borer sufficient to support experimental releases and long-term biological control implementation.
2. Establish and optimize mass-rearing systems for Phymastichus coffea to support experimental releases and long-term biological control implementation.
3. Develop and implement field release strategies for P. coffea across representative coffee production regions and environmental conditions in Hawaii.
4. Evaluate establishment success, parasitism rates, and impacts of P. coffea releases on CBB populations under commercial field conditions and assess compatibility with Beauveria bassiana-based management programs.