Fogging loads of California fresh citrus for control of Asian citrus psyllid, Diaphorina citri

Abstract

Contact insecticides are commonly applied as fogs to disinfest and disinfect spaces. Recently, these fogs have been adapted to treat commodity within the spaces, and much has been learned regarding the efficacy of this process. When considering fresh citrus in California, fogs are applied to control both insects and microbes. One insect pest, the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP), Diaphorina citri, is a quarantine pest in California and limiting its geographic distribution is a major goal of the California citrus industry. While a variety of phytosanitary measures can be used to control adult ACP once fruit is at a packing house, ultimately, a treatment must be developed to disinfest field-run fruit prior to its exiting the grove. High-pressure fogging with 1,100-L of an aqueous mixture containing 0.2% Evergreen® (6% pyrethrins & 60% piperonyl butoxide) and 0.5% (v/v) BreakThru® (polysiloxane surfactant) was explored in laboratory-, pilot-, and commercial-scale trials as an approach to disinfest a 48-bin trailer load of fresh citrus. Laboratory-scale studies were conducted to quantify, and subsequently model, insecticidal coverage as a function of temperature, surface area, droplet size, and fog volume. Results are discussed in the context of experimental variability across confirmatory trials and continued efforts to optimize the technical and economic feasibility of fogging as a postharvest control strategy.

Keywords

• food security
• food safety
• pyrethrins
• postharvest fogging