Ridge Quest Inc.

Awards Issued Prior to January 20, 2025, Were Funded Under Previous Administrations and May Not Reflect the Priorities and Policies of the Current Administration. Non-technical Summary: Many Factors Acting Together, Including Concerns About Worker Safety, Food Safety, Pesticide Resistance and New Regulations Governing Pesticides, Have Heightened Grower Awareness to Reduce Insecticide Inputs and Increase Reliance on Biopesticides. Foremost Among the Forces Leading to Change Is the Need to Reduce Input Costs to Maintain Economic Viability. Mating Disruption Is Among the Most Effective Biopesticides for Managing Various Fruit Crop Pests Including Codling Moth, Oblique Banded Leafroller and Oriental Fruit Moth. Although This Tactic Has Proven to Be a Viable Alternative to Insecticides for Some Key Pests, It Is Yet to Be Embraced as an Economically Viable Alternative to Insecticides in Many Fruit Production Regions. a Major Impediment to Widespread Adoption of Disruption Technologies Are the Number of Devices Needed, Timing, Physical Application of the Product, and the High Product and Application Costs.objectives: the Major Aim in Developing the Tangler Trifecta Technology Is to Greatly Improve the Mating Disruption Application Process, and Substantially Reduce Its Cost, Especially the Application Cost, Thereby Increasing Adoption. the Tangler System Consists of a Bolo Loaded With Pheromone and a Launcher That Enables the Grower to Rapidly Apply Numerous Modules to the Upper Tree Canopy. the Module Consists of a Cap and a Base Each Made of Biodegradable Plastic. as a Result of the Bola Design, the Propelled Modules Readily Become Tangled in the Tree Branches. It Took a Single Applicator 30 Minutes to Treat a 1 Ha Orchard With 1000. Currently, Registered Hand-applied Disruption Formulations Require 3-4 Hours to Treat a 1 Ha Orchard at This High Rate. the Greatly Improved Efficiency Provided by Tangler Trifecta Will Mean That Growers No Longer Will Need to Skimp on the Number of Dispensers Applied Because It Is Time Consuming and Labor Intensive. Moreover, Their Dependence on Labor to Use Mating Disruption and the Expense Associated With the Application Will Be Substantially Reduced.