SIR GROWER & INDUSTRY ADVISORY COMMITTEE

MINUTES of the Grower & Industry Advisory Committee meeting of the OKANAGAN-KOOTENAY STERILE INSECT RELEASE (SIR) PROGRAM held in Penticton, BC at Debbie’s Diner – Meeting Room on January 30th, 2003.

 

Committee Members:

Gavin Young    - Chair             Westbank Packers Ltd

Jack Barkwill                            BC Fru it Packers

Pierre Calissi                            BC Fruit Growers’ Association

Paul Jeffares                             BC Fruit Packers

Denis Larose                            Grower

Charlotte Leaming                    Sun Fresh Coop

Joseph Lucich                           Grower

Wayne Matthews                     C.S.R.D. Director / SIR Board Member

Brian Mennel                            Organic Grower    

Tom Ouchi                               Grower                       

Stan Swales                              Okanagan North Growers Coop

Manuel Torres Jr.                     BC Fruit Growers’ Association (Oliver)

Peter Waterman                       Grower / Consultant

Brian Witzke                            Grower

Bob Fisher-Fleming                                                                  BC Fruit Packers        

           

 

 

Committee Members Absent:

Nirmal Dhaliwal                        Okanagan Similkameen Coop  

Hugh Philip                               BCMAFF Regional Entomologist

Gerry Shaw                              BC Tree Fruits        

Tim Watson                              South Valley Sales

 

Guests:

John Casorso                           Grower

Robert Casorso                        Grower

Steve Day                                Grower

 

SIR Staff:

            Bob Fugger                              General Manager         

Lynn Lashuk                             Agrologist                    

Karen Nelson                           Recording Secretary

           

 

 

AGENDA TOPIC #2:

 

Approval of Minutes

 

The following motion was put forward.

  

Moved by   Joseph Lucich                   Seconded by   Peter Waterman

 

“Accepted minutes for meeting dated November 28th, 2002.”

CARRIED.

 

Gavin Young then introduced guests Rob Casorso, John Casorso, and Steve Day.

 

 

 

JOHN CASORSO, ROBERT CASORSO, STEVE DAY:

 

John Casorso made the following points regarding his personal assessment of the SIR Program for 2002:

2000

·        5 sprays – minimal damage but more than 99. 

2001

·        2 applications of Last Call applied at full strength.

·        5 sprays.

·        Final cover sprayed after Bartlett harvest. Imidan sprayed on Pears, and Guthion sprayed on apples.   

·        40,000 lbs. of Bartletts lost.

2002

·        12 acres of Pears had intense damage, especially in 2002.

·        Was reassured that with spraying throughout the season, that there would be no resistance.

·        Larval testing for chemical spray resistance not available until Spring of 2003.

·        30” turbo mist used. Up to date calibration & maintenance.

·        Pruned in the summer.

·        Prior to harvest, the Casorsos noticed high amount of damaged fruit in their orchards, and asked the SIR Program to “not” release anymore moths in their blocks. They applied another chemical spray for the season, and saw very little damage afterwards. Was a hot fall, which poses other questions.

·        Casorsos put their trust and confidence into the system, and were team players that went along with everything that SIR had given them.

·        SIR did their part on doing whatever they could, but it failed. The technology is not strong enough to solve a problem like this situation. And the scary part is that the problem was not identified, and even today only theories are being discussed.

·        2 cover sprays (Zolone) in June.

·        Full strength sprayed (Zolone) July 9th & 25th .  

·        Sprays were applied August 2nd , 13th, & 27th . Eight sprays (Imidan and Zolone) done in the Pear blocks. No Guthion used in the Pears for about 15 years.

·        Significant damage was assessed even before bins were put out in the orchards.

·        Moths were not released until July.

·        Full Mating Disruption was also hung throughout the orchard.

·        Was not aware until August that SIT does not work in a high pressure area.

·        At end of day, 20-30% of apples lost plus 50,000 lbs. of Pears.

·        Picking costs running about $50.00 per bin at harvest.

·        Should not have to accept cost of operations: taxation, increase of spray cost, and damage. 

·        Running $50.00 per bin for harvest.

·        Request for compensation was denied.

·        If nothing is done in this next context of trials, next option is to seek legal counsel.  

 

Gavin Young then made the following points:

·        Started the meeting by asking about “Area Wide Management” – methodology and approach for control. Blanket treatments. There are times when the individual needs to have the option to take his own action. There is not a mechanism within the management control system to indicate when the timing is the best. The monitoring failed the grower.

·        How do we ensure that the grower can take their own initiative when they feel that it is appropriate to do so?

·        Can the Field Service stay on top early enough, to advise when that decision occurs?

·        Most growers want to be team players, but when there is a problem with this magnitude, the grower needs to take the measures that they need to take. This needs to be done without feeling guilty or feeling let down by the system.

·        The chemicals are also suspect; the protection is not on the fruit. The fruit is being damaged. It is only the chemicals that protect the fruit. SIT, Mating Disruption are only passive control measures. They only deal with the adult moths and only work effectively when the populations are low.

 

Steve Day made the following points regarding his personal assessment of the SIR Program for 2002:

2000

·        Problem has arisen since 2000.

·        A number of things that have happened since the year 2000 that puts all these Pears on the ground, as a direct result of the SIR direction and the Programs that have been implemented.

2001

·        Major problem in Benvoulin blocks.

·        Average of 25-30 stings per tree.

·        In 2001, they have sprayed more then they had in prior years. Used to have traps up every 2 acres, would time sprays according to the numbers that were used, which were higher threshold numbers used than for the apples (which were to be 5 moths per trap for the Pears – but would spray at 2 moths per trap.

·        Localized to 1 block

 

 

 

 

2002

·        In 2002, problems in Pear blocks documented in the South weren’t relayed to Steve.  

·        Feels that growers have lost their ability to effectively monitor due to Mating Disruption hung throughout the orchards.

·        Mating Disruption, SIT, Zolone, and Confirm does not really work on high populations. Because of that, this problem has been building up significantly.

·        Spray timing may be off by a few days, which is critical when a spray like Imidan needs to be done on accurate timing.

·        F1 Moths released, which he does not know the viability of those moths. That had not been definitely answered yet.

·        In the last three years this problem has been building up and has gotten worse.

·        June 14th, Zolone coverage every 2 weeks.

·        Covered up to 7 days pre-harvest.

·        Large population of moths in orchard.

·        Aware that Hugh Philip already stated that neither Mating Disruption nor SIR technology will work in these high-pressure areas.    

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