Discovery of insects to fight maize pests good news

The past few years have been particularly tough for the Kenyan farmer. Not only do farmers have to contend with erratic weather patterns, they have to contend with the high cost of tilling land, buying seed and fertilisers. At the end of it all, they still have to put up with poor yields and prices, but worse, loss of the harvested crop to pests due to poor storage facilities.

In recent years, food security in Kenya has been impeded by, among other factors, the presence of stem-borers and Fall Army worm, pests that destroy crop while it is still on the farm. To counter these, farmers have had to rely heavily on chemicals. Unfortunately, chemicals have serious adverse effects not just on the soil and crops, but on human beings as well.

However, there is hope for farmers following the discovery of a species of insects that can be used to control and eliminate stem-borers and the Fall Army worm. Research by International Centre of Insect physiology and Ecology in collaboration with the French National Research Institute for Sustainable development has established that two insect species code-named Cotesia typhae and Cotesia Icipe can be used in the biological control of Fall Army worm and stem-borers respectively.

The introduction of Cotesia typhae and Icipe will serve several purposes, key among them the elimination of the use of chemicals that are known to be harmful to the soil, crop and human beings. During rainy seasons, rivers get polluted when farm chemicals are washed into them.

Besides, some chemical residues found in harvested food could pose serious danger to human beings. In many instances, chemicals in consumable goods have been identified as part of the leading causes of some cancers. This discovery shows that with persistence man can find solutions many problems, including covid.