• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Facing the ongoing threat of the red-striped soft scale insect (RSSI), the Negros Occidental provincial government is taking a strategic, eco-friendly approach by deploying biological controls rather than resorting to traditional burning.
Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz II said on Thursday, Aug. 14 the Task Force Kontra RSSI has successfully stabilized the mass production of the entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium at the province’s Soils Laboratory, ensuring a steady weekly supply for local farmers.
Rather than blanketing entire regions, the task force is executing a containment strategy by “building a biological wall” to stop the spread.
Diaz said the operations prioritize yellow or green zones, which are adjacent to red zones, to quarantine affected pockets.
“This is a way of isolating, without burning the surroundings, or the RSSI affected areas,” he said.
To sustain and expand these containment measures, Diaz said the provincial government hired six new biologists.
Half of the team is dedicated to boosting Metarhizium production while the other half focuses on insectary operations to breed parasitoid wasps for future deployment.
The provincial government efforts are also amplified by multi-sector partnerships, with Victorias Milling Company, Hawaiian Philippine Company and Philippine Sugar Research Institute Foundation Inc., by covering separate zones, ensuring no vulnerable sugarcane field is left unprotected. | GPB
