Evaluation of some organic products for spotted wing Drosophila control

Abstract: In recent years the potential economic loss associated with Drosophila suzukii (Matsumura) (Diptera: Drosophilidae), the spotted wing Drosophila (SWD), is significantly increased. The timely control of the insect represents a challenge for research, due to the insect’s fast generation time, the wide range of host fruits continuously available throughout the summer season and the zero tolerance for marketing fruits. Currently, control efforts of D. suzukii rely heavily on the use of chemicals; this implies, as the fast SWD generation succession, many interventions at the fruit ripening by increasing risk of insecticide residues in fruits and promoting insect resistance. In accordance with EU indications, providing for the reduction of chemicals, laboratory tests were carried out in 2013 (see Gargani et al., 2013) to evaluate/screen direct and residual toxicity of different organic labelled products. In 2014, on the basis of the acquired evidences, further investigation was performed to evaluate different dosages of these substances. Among the products tested the most interesting results were those obtained using biological insecticides based on Beauveria bassiana.