Mbombela: Tuesday, 1 September 2020, marks the beginning of Project: F3 Fruit Fly Free
- Establishment and maintenance of fruit production areas free and under low prevalence of fruit fly pests in Southern Africa coordinated by the Agricultural Research Council (ARC).
This primary objective of the project is to develop a regionally harmonised framework for development and implementation of recognised Pest Free Areas (PFA) and Areas of Low Pest Prevalence (ALPP) for regulated fruit fly pests of commercial fruit commodities in southern Africa (South Africa and Mozambique). The project follows the directives of relevant International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPMs) as approved by the International Plant Protection Convention.
Dr Tertia Grove Senior Researcher: Tropical and Subtropical Crops, “The Agricultural Research Council has been appointed co-ordinator of this very important project because of its capacity build over 100 years as well as strong relations with other research partners globally.”
Project F3 Fruit Fly Free is funded by the World Trade Organisation (WTO) - Standards and Trade Development Facility. The WTO Standards and Trade Development Facility supports countries in building capacity to implement international sanitary and phytosanitary standards, guidelines and recommendations
Project F3 Fruit Fly Free is a collaboration between various research institutions and government departments. Other partners in the project include the Departments of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development and its Mozambican counterpart, Citrus Research International, Stellenbosch University, Eduardo Mondlane University (Mozambique) and the Royal Museum for Central Africa (Belgium).
The project will run for three consecutive years. The target fruit fly pests in the project are Oriental fruit fly, Bactrocera dorsalis, Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata and melon fruit fly, Zeugodacus cucurbitae.
Other objectives of the project are:
• Established PFA areas in South Africa and Mozambique for target fruit fly species
• Scientifically based evidence for specified low fruit fly prevalence levels for target fruit fly pests
• Established ALPP areas in South Africa and Mozambique for target fruit fly species
• Operational database platform for determination of fruit fly status in different regions in South Africa and Mozambique
• Identification protocol and service for rapid and unambiguous recognition of target fruit fly pests and related taxa
• Financial model for maintenance of PFA and ALPP for target fruit fly pests
“Through various research and development programmes over the years, the Agricultural Research Council has been instrumental in improving South Africa’s agricultural productivity and global competitiveness while increasing the nation’s food security, reducing hunger and improving food and nutrition,” ARC CEO/President, Dr Shadrack Moephuli.
