Ruparao T. Gahukar, Ph.D., of Arag Biotech in Maharashtra, India, Gadi V.P. Reddy, Ph.D., of Montana State University, published a profile of millet insect pests in the open-access Journal of Integrated Pest Management because they saw a need for information on a global scale.
“There hasn’t been a compilation of the economically important insect pests of millet in over 20 years,” says Reddy. “A lot more people in the United States and European countries are consuming millets, so there is an increase in demand and therefore an increase in cultivation and production. An increase in production means there is an increase of insect pests. Minor insect pests are now becoming major pests.”
In many of the countries where millets are grown, integrated pest management (IPM) is not a common or economical practice. Instead, the most common control measure used for pests on millet is insecticide. With the demand for whole grain, gluten-free, organic products, there is a need for IPM in this market. Thus, more research will be critical to determine action thresholds and provide guidelines on best cultural practices, biological control agents, and pheromone-baited traps and to and train and educate farmers.
Read the full article by Jody Green in Entomology Today
