An official website of the United States government.
<p>The general objective of the proposed research is to improve the ability of the grain marketing system to respond to increased pesticide regulations and to consumer demands for wholesome, insect-free foods. The specific objectives are:Estimate costs, benefits and risks of incorporating more IPM components in pest-control strategies in stored grain facilities, and Estimate costs, benefits and risks of incorporating more IPM components in pest-control strategies in food processing facilities.</p>
<p>In order to complete objective 1, the models developed and used in the previous HATCH project (explained in Adam et al. 2006b and Adam et al. 2010) to estimate costs of alternative insect control strategies will continue to be updated, adjusted, and recalibrated based on continuing data input from entomologists and agricultural engineers cooperating on this project and the grant-funded projects noted below.Second, economic risks associated with alternative insect control methods, including those intended to reduce the use of chemicals, will be measured. The sources of risk considered are sampling risk, risk of inadequate insect control, and risk of pesticide residue or insect detection leading to rejection by buyer. Sampling risk is the risk that sampling will fail to detect insects, and economic damage will result from failure to control them. It also includes the risk that sampling will lead to overestimates of insect numbers, resulting in costly, unnecessary treatments, and the risk that sampling at point of sale will overestimate the number of insects in the population, causing economic loss to the seller. In order to complete Objective 2, the principles and framework used for Objective 1 will be used, except that individual sources of cost within the broad categories outlined above are likely greater in number and type than for grain storage firms because of the greater complexity of food processing firms. Less research has been conducted in this area, so fewer tools (such as insect growth models and expert systems) are available to support these procedures. (An exception is a model developed by Flinn et al. 2010 that predicts insect population on each floor of a flour mill, depending on temperature and humidity as well as on cleanliness of the facility and several different treatments.) Also, field data will be more difficult to obtain because of the likely reluctance of food processing firms to allow detailed observation of their practices and facilities. However, collaborators on the grant-funded projects cited below have established contacts with key firms in their respective industries, which may provide representative observations and data.</p>