Associate Insectaries, Rincon-Vitova and Syngenta Bioline are the county’s three IPM providers, and Michelle Haase of Associate Insectaries was on hand at the press conference held in conjunction with the release of the crop report. Haase noted the company has been maintaining the number of acres using IPM over the years, and Agricultural Commissioner Henry Gonzales agreed.“I think beneficials will always have a role” in county agricultural, and the use, said Gonzales, is poised to grow as more pressure increases on the use of pesticides.“People need to remember that agricultural is a science,” and Haase said the county is fortunate to have growers dedicated to new advances and the use of beneficial pest control.The oldest, Associates Insectary, now 80 years old, was formed by a group of growers in Santa Paula. Last year more than 500 million beneficials were reared and liberated in member groves last year, including those almost 3,000 acres of avocado groves using Associate Insectary’s integrated pest management.
Associates Insectary: Vintage company goes high tech for kids’ Fair demo
July 31, 2009
Santa Paula News
Santa Paula’s oldest natural pesticide company will blend the latest technology at the Ventura County Fair when Associates Insectary stages a presentation that can be viewed on the Internet.
By Peggy KellySanta Paula TimesSanta Paula’s oldest natural pesticide company will blend the latest technology at the Ventura County Fair when Associates Insectary stages a presentation that can be viewed on the Internet. The presentation will be held August 7, Youth Day at the fair held at Seaside Park in Ventura.At 1 p.m. on August 7, the Associates Insectary presentation will be online and visible nationally to anyone who logs in. According to President/General Manager Brett Chandler of Associates Insectary, the focus of the presentation will be on sustainable farming practices rather than science research technology to demonstrate Ventura County’s 85-year tradition of integrated pest management.Kids will love the presentation, which will utilize highly detailed imagery to detail the body structure of parasites used to naturally combat “bad” bugs that threaten the county’s large agricultural industry. Chandler said a PC linked 300X projection microscope will be used to demonstrate the behavior and “interaction between lives hosts and prey in the orchards.”The recently released 2008 Ventura County Agricultural Commissioner’s Annual Crop and Livestock Report saluted the county’s insectaries, past and present. Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is vital to citrus, avocado and berry production, and the report notes the use of beneficial insects and mites for biological control of injurious pests “helps contribute to keeping all three fruit crops in the county’s top 10.”