Agrii, the crop research, trials and agronomy services provider, has signed a multi-year agreement with RapidAim, an Australian AgTech company focused on insect management, to bring its pheromone-based system for detecting codling moth in apple orchards to growers in the United Kingdom.
The agreement follows two years of trials by Agrii with commercial growers in southern England to evaluate the system and its unique capabilities.
RapidMOTH, as the codling moth technology is known, will enable growers to manage codling moth populations in real-time. This will support the targeted use of insecticides based on existing threshold standards and allow growers to monitor post-application populations to determine the need for follow-up treatments. The technology is available to interested growers now.
RapidAIM closes the loop of insect detection and management in high value crops allowing data to be collected and analysed in real-time to determine the need for protective treatments and generate forecasts of insect pressure at the orchard and region level.
Data is gathered via networks of simple, “works-anywhere” sensors that transmit tiny packets of data via the narrowband internet of things (IoT) network. The RapidAIM team turns these data into real-time analytics and forecasts that allow customers to understand pest pressure, optimise application timing, and determine the most appropriate course of action to ensure crops remain protected.
This results in significant opportunities for growers to promote production efficiencies as they can replace labour-intensive trapping and analysis with a proven technology. It means can adapt insect management programmes by optimising insecticide applications.
RapidAIM’s partnership with Agrii is a high priority for RapidAIM, and RapidAIM teammates from both Australia and the United States are engaged to ensure that Agrii and its grower customers find RapidAIM technology easy to deploy and see significant benefits from using that technology.
