It said that the overuse of spraying has led to insects developing resistance to the pesticide chemicals, according to Secretariat of the Pacific Community's integrated pest management officer, Fereti Atumurirava. He said that spraying became an issue in Fiji after farmers complained of low yields with their leafy vegetables (such as cabbages) when pesticides did not prove effective.

Atumurirava revealed the findings as part of the Integrated Crop Management Project they were working on last year. The project is supported by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) and the Fiji Agriculture Organisation (FAO).

"The effectiveness of the spray takes four days," he said. "When you spray on the insects, it takes four days before it dies. But with our farmers, they want a quick fix, they spray two to three times more after three days, this is not good. After one season the pests will develop resistance against the chemicals."

One of the methods Atumurirava has suggested was to alternate chemicals when spraying vegetables.

Source: fijitimes.com