Present in France since 2006, the Red Palm Weevil (RPW) poses a threat to plant heritage, especially the Canary Island date palm. Faced with the RPW infestation, like all other cities in the Mediterranean basin, the City of Nice has experimented with methods of control and research to curb the invasion of this pest and to implement a sustainable environmental policy without pesticides.
As part of this research, the company Arysta Life Science, based in Pau, has developed a natural bio-insecticide, ARY-0711B-01, based on strain 111 of the fungus Beauveria bassiana. This acts in such a way that it neutralizes the weevil. This solution received marketing authorization from the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) in March 2018.
On Thursday, teams from Nice’s Department of Green Spaces and those from Vegetech conducted a demonstration of using a 100% natural solution to combat the Red Palm Weevil (RPW).
