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Follow on Google News | Exosect presents use of friendly fungus in protection of post-harvest commoditiesUsing micro powder technology to deliver friendly fungus to grain
By: Exosect Exosect, a specialist in using micro-powders to deliver a range of pesticides and biopesticides provided an update on its progress so far in developing a natural pest control solution for stored commodities using a microscopic ‘friendly’ Originally discovered in UK grain stores, a unique strain of Beauveria bassiana, a microscopic fungus, was found to be effective at controlling various insect pests that infest stored grain. Exosect licensed this strain from the UK government agency FERA* and together with a consortium of specialists and government funding, has developed a unique way of delivering the fungal spores to insect pests in grain stores. Exosect’s Head of Technology Development commented, “A key issue with using fungal isolates to control pests is ensuring stability and longevity in the formulation. Discovering an isolate is one part of the challenge, developing a commercially viable formulation in terms of cost and application then becomes the next critical phase. We’ve got to the point where we will shortly submit our body of work thus far to the EU regulatory bodies and are talking to commercialisation partners”’. - Ends - Background information About Exosect Exosect was launched in 2001 and is most well-known for developing pheromone based pest control products for the speciality crop sector. The concept was later developed for rice, helping to reduce pesticide use and consequent ground water contamination in India. The technique also pioneered the use of pheromones to control moth pests in food manufacturing, helping to reduce insecticide spray regimes and reduce costly factory shutdowns. The company has developed an in-depth knowledge and extensive patent portfolio of the platforms as targeted delivery mechanisms for a range of active ingredients, biological and synthetic. Today, the technology is enabling partners across a range of sectors to realise the efficient delivery of their active ingredients. About SCI SCI is a unique international forum where science meets business on independent, impartial ground. SCI provides the opportunity for sharing information between sectors as diverse as food and agriculture, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, environmental science and safety. Established in 1881 as the Society of Chemical Industry, SCI is today a registered charity with individual members in over 70 countries. Its international headquarters are in London. Ever since its foundation, SCI's principal objective has been to further the application of chemistry and related sciences for the public benefit, through our events and publications. *SCI’s BioResources Group was established 60 years ago, and its remit covers the production of food and materials from the planet's biological resources. The Group is a unique multidisciplinary network involved in all aspects of food security and the bioeconomy. The Group aims to reflect contemporary agricultural science and agribusiness interests. *The Food and Environment Research Agency (Fera) - Our role is about understanding problems and enabling sustainable solutions through innovative thinking and the gathering and analysis of robust scientific evidence. This gives us the right platform to be able to support our customers in both the strategic and day-to-day decisions they face. By listening to what our customers tell us, it is clear that our ability to understand a problem and find solutions is what differentiates Fera. In some cases this involves working as multidisciplinary teams within the Agency, and in others we are tapping into the extensive worldwide network of partnerships we have created with other research organisations and academia. www.fera.defra.gov.uk/ End
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