SRA may tap fungus to keep sugarcane pest under control

THE Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) said it is considering turning to a fungus that is a natural enemy of the red striped soft-scale insect (RSSI) to curb the sugarcane pest.

SRA Administrator and CEO Pablo Luis S. Azcona told reporters that farmers could be taught to deploy Metarhizium anisopliae, which grows naturally on Panay.

RSSI has the potential to reduce the sugar content of cane by 50%. The fungus could be part of an integrated pest management approach to the infestation in sugar farms in the Visayas.

The SRA said another RSSI-eating fungus is present in Bago, Negros Occidental, identified as Beauveria bassiana.

The propagation of biological control agents will reduce the reproductive capacity of the targeted organism.

RSSI has been detected in 2,932.13 hectares (has.) of sugar land, including 1,574 has. in Negros Occidental, as of July 9, Mr. Azcona said.

The integrated pest management approach’s goal is minimizing disruption to agro-ecosystems while keeping the use of pesticides and other chemical interventions to economically justifiable levels.

Mr. Azcona said the SRA is looking into “long-term interventions that may be way cheaper and less harmful than pesticides use, which may be harmful to other beneficial pests of sugarcane.”

The SRA said none of the affected local government units has declared a state of calamity, which would enable the SRA to expedite the procurement of pesticides. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza