Environmentally sound pest control provider Exosect has been awarded a grant from Defra to facilitate a joint research project with the International Pesticide Application Research Centre (IPARC), Dow AgroSciences and Micron Sprayers into commercial development of a new spray technology.

The project, sponsored by Defra’s Pesticide Safety Directorate through the Sustainable Arable LINK programme, aims to develop a spray technology that uses charged powders developed by Exosect to enhance adherence to both foliage and the target pest.

The project will utilise the combined expertise of the pesticide application specialist IPARC, Exosect for the development of the electrostatic particulate technology, Micron Sprayers as experts in the manufacture and design of spray application equipment and Dow AgroSciences, who will provide analytical capabilities for active ingredients.

“The stigmatic surface of a flower is a common entry route for pests that cause floral infection,” explains Exosect md Martin Brown. “The development and marketing of this novel spray technology will improve overall efficiency, whilst at the same time reducing spray drift and pesticide application rates. It will lengthen required spray intervals, minimise the pesticide burden in the environment and minimise potential exposure risk to operators.”

The project is due for completion in September 2007.

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