Bayer pheromone-based pest control product for citrus farms
Bayer has launched Vynyty Citrus, a biological and pheromone-based crop protection product to control pests on citrus farms. Vynyty Citrus is a container with an active liquid inside that does not generate resistance or residues in harvests or in the environment.
According to Bayer, Vynyty Citrus is the first product on the market that is formulated with pheromones and natural pyrethrum to control pests in citrus fruits. Pheromones effectively control pests by interfering with their mating behaviors, thus preventing their reproduction.
Licensed for commercial use
The product is currently being used in Spain and will soon be available to growers of citrus and other crops in other Mediterranean countries. It is licensed for commercial use by Ecología y Protección Agricola (EPA) in Valencia and provides 400 days of pest control.
Reduce invasive pest populations of three species
Vynyty Citrus is formulated to gradually reduce the invasive pest populations of three species: California red louse (Aonidiella aurantii), citrus cotonet (Planococcus citri) and South African cotonet (Delottococcus aberiae). The South African cotonet, due to its rapid expansion in recent years and the deformities it causes in citrus fruits, is considered the most invasive fruit pest and the one that alarms growers the most.
“With this, we manage to control and gradually reduce the populations of these species with a more sustainable solution, which does not generate resistance or residues in the harvest or in the environment and, moreover, acts 365 days a year,” said Javier Pérez, Head of Bayer Crop Science Fruit Crops in Spain.
Plague of the South African cotonet
Currently the plague of the South African cotonet is affecting more than 40,000 ha of citrus fruits in the Valencian Community. As a result, the pest is causing the deformation of fruits which not only prevents them for commercial use, but it is also forming new colonies within citrus areas located on the Spanish eastern coast.
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