Status of Oriental fruit fly in SA

The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) has made an announcement on the national status of the Oriental fruit fly (Bactrocera dorsalis), an exotic fruit fly native to Asia previously described as an invader fruit fly(Bactrocera invadens), and the associated control measures.

Scott Bauer via Wikimedia Commons - Bactrocera dorsalis

It is now found in at least 65 countries and in most of Africa’s sub-Saharan countries. The crop hosts include mango, guava, citrus, avocado, banana, coffee, papaya, passion fruit, pear, apricot peach, cherry, apple, pepper, and tomato. This pest can result in food insecurity, yield reduction, job losses, market restrictions and high production and post-harvest costs if not effectively controlled.

This pest can be controlled by practicing effective orchard/field sanitation, chemical control and control of the removal of host material from quarantine (infested) areas to non-quarantine (non-infested) areas. Orchard sanitation is the collection of all fallen and rotten fruit/fruiting vegetables, burying them in a pit or trench and covering with half a metre of soil, or placing them into a black refuse bag, closing it and exposing it to the sun.

In terms of chemical control, Male Annihilation (MAT) blocks and protein bait stations such as M3s or protein bait sprays can be applied. As part of the official control mechanism, community members and farmers are reminded not to remove fruit from quarantine areas to non-quarantine areas without first receiving a removal permit which should be applied and obtainable from the DAFF in terms of the Control Measures R.110 of the Agricultural Pests Act,1983 (Act No. 36 of 1983). They are also advised to clear away (bag or bury) unwanted fruit in home gardens and on farms and apply chemical control.

International travellers are advised to avoid illegal importation of agricultural commodities into South Africa because this may lead to the introduction of new pests and diseases which are expensive and difficult to manage.

Please do not remove the fruit fly trapping buckets placed along roadsides, in production areas and other public areas. Their presence is essential to the national exotic fruit fly surveillance programme. People in all provinces producing the host crops of this pest are advised to stay alert and practice the stipulated preventative control measures.