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Agronomy
Special Issues
Pest Management for Agro-Food during Storage
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Pest Management for Agro-Food during Storage

A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Pest and Disease Management".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 May 2021) | Viewed by 24304

Special Issue Editors

Dr. William Morrison

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Center for Grain and Animal Health Research, Manhattan, KS 66502, USA
Interests: chemical ecology; behavioral ecology; alien and invasive species; integrated pest management; biological control; ecological modeling
Prof. Dr. Christos Athanassiou

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Laboratory of Entomology and Agricultural Zoology, Crop Production and Rural Environment, Department of Agriculture, University of Thessaly, Nea Ionia, Magnessia, Greece
Interests: pheromones and semiochemicals; insect parasitoids; population ecology; sampling and trapping; invasive biology; integrated pest management; microbial control; chemical control
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The vast majority of agricultural products pass through a storage and processing stage, either as raw or as processed commodities. This is particularly important in the case of agro-food commodities, as any measures that are taken to protect them during storage affect food availability and safety. During these post-harvest stages, most commodities are attacked by different pest species that cause serious quantitative losses and decreases in quality. In the case of major cereal commodities, such as grains and related products, these losses may reach as much as 30% in some developing countries, which is clearly indicative of the importance of post-harvest insects in global food availability. At the same time, some key stored product insects are also serious quarantine pests in many areas of the world, and their presence threatens international trade and requires specialized control and legislative measures. However, most studies are focused on insect control at the pre-harvest stages of pests that are present in crops and orchards, and there is disproportionally limited research on post-harvest. This Special Issue will increase awareness of post-harvest pest control in the agro-food sector, emphasizing novel, ecologically compatible technologies.

Dr. William Morrison
Prof. Christos Athanassiou
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Agronomy is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Integrated pest management of stored products
  • Stored-product insect biology and ecology
  • Chemical and non-chemical at the post-harvest stages of agricultural commodities
  • Post-harvest pests and agro-food safety and security
  • Socio-economic aspects in pest control during storage and processing of agro-food

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Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

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8 pages, 505 KiB  
Article
Pest Control in Primary Sector: Towards the Identification of Knowledge Gaps
by Angeliki Stefopoulou, Dionyssia A. Maselou, Dimitrios Papachristos, Antonios Kolimenakis, Antonios Michaelakis, Christos Athanassiou and George Vlontzos
Agronomy 2021, 11(8), 1596; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy11081596 - 11 Aug 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2282
Abstract
Pest control provides important and useful services in rural and urban environments, activities, and value chains. Despite the significance of them, under operational, environmental and food security and safety terms, there are still gaps in the awareness level of targeted groups. Therefore, in [...] Read more.
Pest control provides important and useful services in rural and urban environments, activities, and value chains. Despite the significance of them, under operational, environmental and food security and safety terms, there are still gaps in the awareness level of targeted groups. Therefore, in the current work, we have carried out questionnaire-based surveillance to pest control operators in Greece and Cyprus, in an attempt to illustrate their knowledge regarding pest control in conjunction with demographic characteristics. In this context, the results underlined the need for further training in all aspects of pest control, but also relative activities that are often are operated by pest controllers, such as food safety activities and applications in the urban and sub-urban environment. The replies that had been obtained during the survey showed good correlations of knowledge with specific variables, such as the size of the company, the age group, and the educational background, in conjunction with the country in which the professional activities are carried out. To our knowledge, this is the first work of its kind, in terms of pest controllers’ perceptions and self-evaluation, illustrating specific knowledge gaps that have to be alleviated towards improved services in urban pest control, especially in sensitive urban areas and facilities, and improved measures for safety during the applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pest Management for Agro-Food during Storage)
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10 pages, 639 KiB  
Article
Potential for the Postharvest Biological Control of Phthorimaea operculella (Lepidoptera, Gelechiidae) by Blattisocius tarsalis (Mesostigmata, Blattisociidae)
by Jorge Gavara, Ana Piedra-Buena, Estrella Hernandez-Suarez, Manuel Gamez, Tomas Cabello and Juan R. Gallego
Agronomy 2021, 11(2), 288; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy11020288 - 4 Feb 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2949
Abstract
Phthorimaea operculella is one of the most important pests causing damage to stored potatoes. In this work, the effect of temperature (at 10, 20 and 30 °C) on the predation of pest eggs by Blattisocius tarsalis was studied in the laboratory. In addition, [...] Read more.
Phthorimaea operculella is one of the most important pests causing damage to stored potatoes. In this work, the effect of temperature (at 10, 20 and 30 °C) on the predation of pest eggs by Blattisocius tarsalis was studied in the laboratory. In addition, the effect of three predatory release rates on two pest densities was studied under microcosm conditions. The results showed that B. tarsalis maintains its predatory capacity at low temperatures (10 °C), obtaining an efficiency of 49.66 ± 5.06% compared to the control. In turn, at 20 °C, a maximum efficacy of 78.17 ± 4.77% was achieved, very similar to that presented at 30 °C (75.57 ± 4.34%). Under microcosm conditions and at low pest density (10 eggs/container), the mortality due to the mite was 96.97 ± 3.03%, 81.82 ± 8.84%, and 84.85 ± 8.30%, respectively, for the three predatory release rates (5, 10 or 20 mites/container). At the high infestation level, the pest control ranged from 61.54 ± 9.21% to 92.31 ± 2.74%, depending on the predatory release rate. The results obtained show that B. tarsalis could be a relevant control agent against P. operculella under non-refrigerated potato storage conditions, as well as in the first stages of their storage under refrigerated conditions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pest Management for Agro-Food during Storage)
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16 pages, 2450 KiB  
Article
Aeration to Manage Insects in Wheat Stored in the Balkan Peninsula: Computer Simulations Using Historical Weather Data
by William R. Morrison III, Frank H. Arthur, Lloyd Ted Wilson, Yubin Yang, Jing Wang and Christos G. Athanassiou
Agronomy 2020, 10(12), 1927; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy10121927 - 8 Dec 2020
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 2814
Abstract
Wheat is one of the major crops throughout the Balkan peninsula of Europe. Specific harvest and binning dates can vary depending on the specific geographic region. Grain aeration, wherein ambient air is used at low-volume airflow rates to cool a grain mass to [...] Read more.
Wheat is one of the major crops throughout the Balkan peninsula of Europe. Specific harvest and binning dates can vary depending on the specific geographic region. Grain aeration, wherein ambient air is used at low-volume airflow rates to cool a grain mass to levels that will suppress insect population development, is an under-utilized component of pest management plans for stored wheat. The successful use of aeration can potentially reduce fumigation of stored wheat, which will contribute to the amelioration of increasingly prevalent phosphine resistance. Historical weather data were used from 19 sites in the Balkan region to predict how quickly grains could be cooled through the use of aeration, using a web-based aeration model, and three different starting dates, including 1, 15, and 30 July. The model was used to predict population growth and development of Sitophilus oryzae, the rice weevil, with and without the use of aeration. Results show that, in the northern regions of the Balkans, aeration implemented at the start of binning reduced insect populations far below pest levels in unaerated wheat, and may potentially eliminate the need for fumigations. In more southerly regions, additional chemical inputs, such as fumigation or grain protectants, may be necessary in conjunction with aeration. Results provide guidelines for the increased potential of using aeration for the management of wheat produced and stored in the Balkan peninsula. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pest Management for Agro-Food during Storage)
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18 pages, 1368 KiB  
Article
Oviposition and Development of Tribolium Castaneum Herbst (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) on Different Types of Flour
by Alison R. Gerken and James F. Campbell
Agronomy 2020, 10(10), 1593; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy10101593 - 17 Oct 2020
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 4926
Abstract
The commercial availability of low-gluten or gluten-free flours has been increasing due to consumer demands, which raises new challenges for the management of stored product insects since little is known about the susceptibility of these flours to infestation. Here we measured oviposition and [...] Read more.
The commercial availability of low-gluten or gluten-free flours has been increasing due to consumer demands, which raises new challenges for the management of stored product insects since little is known about the susceptibility of these flours to infestation. Here we measured oviposition and development of Tribolium castaneum, the red flour beetle, a major pest of wheat and rice mills, on 18 different commercially available flours (almond, amaranth, barley, buckwheat, cassava, coconut, corn, garbanzo, millet, oat, potato, quinoa, rice, rye, sorghum, spelt, teff, and wheat) to assess the level of risk. The average number of eggs laid was highest for teff flour, with wheat, rice, buckwheat, sorghum, barley, rye, and spelt flour also having high oviposition. The lowest oviposition was for potato, quinoa, amaranth and cassava. Holding the eggs laid in these flours and evaluating the ability to develop to the adult stage demonstrated that the average number of adult progeny was highest for teff and wheat, followed by buckwheat, rye, oat, spelt, and millet. In an experiment where single eggs were placed directly in flour, the highest percentage development was in barley, buckwheat, sorghum, spelt, teff, and wheat. Time for 50% of single eggs to develop to adults was quickest for sorghum, spelt, teff, and wheat, while sorghum, buckwheat, corn, spelt, and barley had the quickest development of 90% of eggs to reach adults. There was substantial variation among the different flours which indicates variation in risk of insect infestation. As consumer interest in these flours continues to grow and these alternative flours become more prevalent in food facilities, understanding what diets insects successfully infest is critical to developing management tools. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pest Management for Agro-Food during Storage)
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9 pages, 1600 KiB  
Article
Efficacy Determination of Commercial Deltamethrin-Treated Storage Bags on Trogoderma granarium Everts Adults and Larvae
by Deanna S. Scheff, Frank H. Arthur, Scott W. Myers and Michael J. Domingue
Agronomy 2020, 10(6), 814; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy10060814 - 9 Jun 2020
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3299
Abstract
Trogoderma granarium Everts, the khapra beetle, is a serious stored product pest known to feed on >100 different products worldwide and is a major threat to global food security. Deltamethrin-treated storage bags are a resource that could be used to limit infestations during [...] Read more.
Trogoderma granarium Everts, the khapra beetle, is a serious stored product pest known to feed on >100 different products worldwide and is a major threat to global food security. Deltamethrin-treated storage bags are a resource that could be used to limit infestations during storage of grain in bags. We investigated the efficacy of deltamethrin-treated bags against T. granarium adults and larvae. Deltamethrin-treated and untreated packaging materials were affixed into the bottom of plastic Petri dishes (62 or 137 cm2) to create a bioassay arena. Adult T. granarium were exposed and observed to determine the time to knockdown and the subsequent mortality rate within 24 h. Adult T. granarium were knocked down in <60 min, and 100% of adults were knocked down or dead after 24 h. Trogoderma granarium larvae were exposed for 0.33, 1, 2, 3, or 4 d or continually exposed and monitored for larval death and adult emergence. Larvae exposed for 4 d had 50% mortality versus 97% if continually exposed. Utilizing this deltamethrin-treated packaging could cause disruptions in natural populations of T. granarium found in storage facilities, and the treated packaging is an effective tool that could be implemented into an integrated pest management program for bagged grain. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pest Management for Agro-Food during Storage)
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35 pages, 1837 KiB  
Article
Methodology for Assessing Progeny Production and Grain Damage on Commodities Treated with Insecticides
by Frank Arthur and W. Robert Morrison III
Agronomy 2020, 10(6), 804; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy10060804 - 5 Jun 2020
Cited by 21 | Viewed by 2763
Abstract
In evaluating insecticides, progeny production on grain commodities can be evaluated by either exposing adults on a commodity for a given time period, then removing them and assessing mortality and progeny production, or by leaving the adults on the commodity continuously, and then [...] Read more.
In evaluating insecticides, progeny production on grain commodities can be evaluated by either exposing adults on a commodity for a given time period, then removing them and assessing mortality and progeny production, or by leaving the adults on the commodity continuously, and then assessing progeny production. Little research directly compares these methodologies. Thus, our aims were to: (1) determine residual efficacy of Diacon IGR+ (methoprene+deltamethrin) and Gravista (methoprene+deltamethrin+piperonyl butoxide) on wheat, corn, and brown rice over the course of a year, using bioassays with select stored product insects at different time intervals, and (2) directly compare the two different methods of parental adult exposure on progeny production. Adults were either exposed for 7 d, then removed and assessed for survival, and the commodities were held for 6–7 weeks to assess progeny production, or adults were continuously exposed on the commodities for 6–7 weeks. Commodities were aged and sampled every 3 months for 12 months. Afterwards, samples were examined for progeny, sample weight loss, and insect feeding damage. Each insecticide killed exposed adults and prevented progeny of Rhyzopertha dominica on wheat and brown rice, and Tribolium castaneum on corn. There was extensive survival of Sitophilus spp. on all commodities, though Gravista did initially suppress S. oryzae on wheat and S. zeamais on corn compared to Diacon IGR+. Progeny, weight loss, and insect feeding damage were positively correlated in the 7 d exposure compared with continuous parental exposure. Both insecticides will control R. dominica and externally-feeding insects, but may exhibit reduced effectiveness for Sitophilus spp., especially S. oryzae. Food managers can utilize these data to more effectively plan management programs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pest Management for Agro-Food during Storage)
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Review

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17 pages, 320 KiB  
Review
Prospects for Use of Biological Control of Insect and Mites for the Food Industry in North America
by Vincent A. D. Hervet and William R. Morrison III
Agronomy 2021, 11(10), 1969; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy11101969 - 29 Sep 2021
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 3650
Abstract
There are a number of strategies used to mitigate and control insect infestations in stored products and stored product facilities in North America and globally. Fumigation remains one of the main techniques used, particularly in bulk grain. Other techniques are also utilized effectively, [...] Read more.
There are a number of strategies used to mitigate and control insect infestations in stored products and stored product facilities in North America and globally. Fumigation remains one of the main techniques used, particularly in bulk grain. Other techniques are also utilized effectively, such as the use of extreme temperatures and the use of biological control agents, but are mainly restricted to organic products and to Europe, respectively. Here, we review the past research conducted in the field of biological control for pests of stored products in North America and in Europe, its past and present successes in Europe, its challenges, and what we can learn from them to develop biological control as a viable option to problems of insect pests of stored products in North America. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pest Management for Agro-Food during Storage)
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