Fooling Fruit Flies

We are thrilled to share a new approach to tackling Spotted Wing Drosophila, a notorious pest that infests ripe, ready-to-eat fruit. This little pest poses a significant threat to farmers because it is very difficult to control with standard pesticides.
Our solution involves manipulating the behavior of these insects by disguising healthy fruit as being infected with an unappealing pathogen. By studying the specific odors emitted by infected fruit, we identified chemicals that repel the flies when applied to healthy fruit. This method allows us to protect crops without relying solely on insecticides.
We are developing a slow-release device to disperse these fruity odors in the field, ensuring they don't come into direct contact with the fruit. We hope this technology provides a new tool to help farmers produce healthy, tasty fruit for consumers.