Research maps on pesticide use, pest-resistance activity to be released

Maps of pesticide reporting data will be released from a joint research project on insect resistance to pesticides by the University of Arizona and the University of California, Riverside, titled "Prospective Resistance Management: Empowering Growers to Understand and Exploit Refugia," the universities said on Friday.
 
The colleges were assisted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the project was funded by Monsanto. The maps will indicate areas where certain kinds of pesticides are used and what is occurring in terms of pest resistance.

The National Corn Growers Association said this information will provide important information to producers and farmers that will allow strategic uses of pesticides to better prevent pest damage to crops. Researchers said this information will likely provide insight into how insect resistance forms and what environmental conditions can affect this phenomenon.

Researchers aim to study past chemical usage to determine the relationship between past use of pesticides and insect resistance. The maps developed in the project will be utilized to reach out to stakeholders so they can use pesticides more efficiently and in a way that does not facilitate resistance development.

This project is among six projects that were awarded with grants from Monsanto as part of its Insect Management Knowledge Program, which aims to provide merit-based financing for each project's attempts to better understand and combat challenges to national agriculture.