SEPTEMBER 1, 2002
ISCA AWARDED $296,000 FROM THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE TO DEVELOP A MANUFACURING ROUTE AND DELIVERY SYSTEM FOR THE PECAN NUT CASEBEARER SYNTHETIC PHEROMONE

ISCA Technologies, Inc., was awarded $296,000 from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to research and develop a novel, more economical and high purity synthetic manufacturing route for the pecan nut casebearer (PNC) moth’s pheromone, and to optimize its use and delivery to control the PNC in pecan orchards. ISCA foresees the development of PNC pheromone formulations that will control PNC populations at costs comparable to that of conventional insecticides, providing a cost-effective, ecologically friendly pest control solution without the use of harsh insecticides.

Alternatives to insecticides have been investigated for a number of years. Insect sex-pheromones (chemicals that are used for mating communication between members of the same species) constitute a powerful, non-toxic, and relatively new class of compounds that have a number of advantages over conventional insecticides. Insect pheromones are non-toxic and environmentally friendly, are specific to the target insect and do not adversely affect beneficial insects. In addition, insects seem incapable of developing resistance to insect pheromones: decades of use of pheromone to control insects yielded no indication of development of resistance.

The two major factors limiting further growth of insect pheromones, however, are availability and cost. In many cases, insect pheromone applications are more expensive than those using conventional insecticides, mainly because starting materials are expensive (from $200 to over $1000/Kg). The innovative PNC pheromone synthesis route that ISCA developed takes advantage of novel proprietary technologies that allow the use of inexpensive starting materials, some costing as low as $1.00/Kg, thus reducing drastically the overall cost of the final pheromone active ingredient.

The pecan nut casebearer, Acrobasis nuxvorella, is one of the key pest of pecans, the last major pests of the half a billion dollar U.S. pecan industry that is not currently controlled by biological means. If left unchecked, the PNC would devastate the pecan industry. Furthermore the effective organophosphate insecticides are being reviewed by EPA’s Food Quality Protection Act and are candidates for removal from the market because of persistent residuals. Other insecticides, although a temporary solution, should be avoided because they cause population explosions in aphids and spider mites, which then become difficult to control. There is, therefore, an urgent need for a viable and economical pest control alternative. Adoption of ISCA’s pheromone solution will lead to widespread integrated pest management for the production of higher-value organic pecans. ISCA’s pheromone solution is anticipated to reduce the cost of pecan production in the United States by at least $8 million annually.

ABOUT THE USDA SMALL BUSINESS INNOVATION RESEARCH PROGRAM

The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) makes grants that are competitively awarded to qualified small businesses for the purpose of supporting high quality research proposals containing advanced concepts related to important scientific problems and opportunities in agriculture that could lead to significant public benefit if the research is successful. The objectives of the SBIR Program are to stimulate technological innovations in the private sector, strengthen the role of small businesses in meeting Federal research and development needs, increase private sector commercialization of innovations derived from USDA-supported research and development efforts, and foster and encourage participation by women-owned and socially and economically disadvantaged small business firms in technological innovations.

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