Facilitating International Agricultural Trade Through Science: the Case of Tephritid Flies
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Date
2018
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Sokoine University of Agriculture
Abstract
International agricultural trade is important in addressing spatial and temporal
food shortages across the globe. Agricultural trade generates income and
contributes to economies of many countries. Unfortunately, there are various
risks associated with the movement of agricultural commodities across borders.
The spread of pests across countries is one of the great risks. The International
Plant Protection Convention (IPPC), which is an agreement between nations,
aims at preventing and controlling the introduction and spread of pests of
plants and plant products across national boundaries. IPPC formulates various
standards and guidelines that can be adopted by member states to formulate
municipal phytosanitary laws against the introduction of pests. Countries
normally conduct Pest Risk Analysis (PRA) in order to facilitate agricultural
trade. This process requires scientific evidence on the identity and occurrences
of pests in an area and a possible entry and the establishment and the spread
of those pests into exotic places. Fruits and vegetable trade is important for
food and security among the global population. However, fruit trade introduces
the risk of the spread of pests, including fruit flies. Most fruit flies cause heavy
losses to the fruit industry and these are therefore of quarantine importance.
Research which has been conducted across the globe provided scientific
evidence on the possible spread of fruit flies in order to facilitate trade. The
Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA) collaborated with various partners in
the world to generate important information that is a prerequisite for conducting
PRA. This inaugural lecture highlights key findings that include identification
of new species, resolution of cryptic species, host range and preference,
spatial and temporal distribution, and mitigation options against the selected
economically important fruit flies.
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Keywords
International trade, fruits, fruit flies, quarantine