Australia’s biosecurity systems will be strengthened through a A$20.5m (US$15.2m) joint research project between Macquarie University and Horticulture Innovation Australia. The programme will focus on the management of Queensland fruit fly (Qfly) through the sterile insect technique (SIT).
Associate professor Phil Taylor will head-up the project’s research team, which hopes to emulate the success of area-wide SIT programmes that have controlled other fruit fly species overseas.
“Fruit flies, especially the Queensland fruit fly, present a truly monumental challenge to horticultural production in Australia,” explained Taylor. “For generations, Australia has relied on synthetic insecticides to protect crops, but these are now banned for many uses. Environmentally benign alternatives are needed urgently – this is our goal.
“We hope that by bringing both the technology and scientific underpinnings of Qfly SIT and area-wide management up to world standard, we will be able to deliver viable and sustainable solutions to Australian growers.”
The SIT technique introduces sterile flies into the environment with the intention of these flies mating with the wild population and ensuring they cannot reproduce
Macquarie University will collaborate closely with the SITPlus consortium – a research group facilitated by Horticulture Innovation Australia that brings together experts from Macquarie University, South Australia’s Primary Industries and Regions, the South Australian Research and Development Institute, the CSIRO and the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries.
The project will also be used to train Australia’s next generation of fruit fly and biosecurity researchers, with 18 PhD students and eight Research Fellows across the SITPlus network directly involved in the research.
“This approach reflects a new investment template for strategic research co-investment in Australian horticulture, and represents a paradigm shift from other models,” said Horticulture Innovation Australia CEO John Lloyd.
