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Integrated Pest Management Package on Olive
Using IPM Package in other countries

Management of olive fruit fly (Bactrocera oleae Gml.) in a country will depend on a combination of early detection of pests, an effective “attract and kill” trapping of adult flies and cultural practices.

In order to adopt the IPM Package, a consortium of competent institutions must take interdisciplinary and combined action. The institutions that could be involved include: agricultural research institutions, universities, experts in olive production and extension services. It is important to emphasize that the action taken must be highly interdisciplinary and collaborative, due to the specific characteristics of the method.




In order to prevent infestation in commercial production areas it is essential to detect olive fruit flies early. The Ministry of Agriculture should develop a national management plan to detect and control olive fruit flies in the olive-growing districts; the plan should include methods for the catch of adult flies as well as control procedures.

The “Attract and Kill” method is very simple and does not require an extensive technological background or a great amount of knowledge to be transferred to farmers.

The necessary technical equipment consists only of eco-traps, that are produced by specialized private companies in various Mediterranean countries and that can be easily found by the Institution that promotes the method in other countries.

Although the use of the IPM package for the control of the olive fruit fly is not subject to any legislative restriction, the semiochemical-based products (Eco-traps) needed for the “Attract and Kill” method can only be used after registration. The registration procedure varies from country to country.

The steps to be taken for the implementation of the IPM Package are:

• Set up of a Consortium with agricultural research institutes and universities to carry out the following activities:
• Identification of potential areas for the implementation of the IPM Package;
• Monitoring of the key pests;
• Control of the key pests (Olive Fruit Fly) with the “Attract and Kill” method;
• Control of the key pests with cultural methods;
• Design of the appropriate IPM Package, based on the previous steps.

• Transfer of the IPM technology to the olive growers of the selected areas, through the Extension Services of the Regional Administrations:
• Identification of the farmers’ associations interested in implementing IPM Package;
• Theoretical and technical training of the farmers on the use of IPM Package;
• Organisation of regional workshops and demonstration trials on IPM technology;
• Practical training on the application of the “Attract and Kill” method.
• Application of IPM Package, in collaboration with the Albanian olive growers Associations, independent growers and farm advisers.