Review of the role of sterile insect technique within biologically-based pest control – An appraisal of existing regulatory frameworks

Abstract

Sterile insect technique (SIT) is increasingly sought after as a sustainable insect control technique. Originally, SIT pursued the eradication of a target population and was used in governmental/public area-wide integrated pest management (IPM) programs. However, it nowadays is used more often as a population suppression method. Therefore, this technique also receives growing interest from commercial insect producers. Given the increased adoption of the SIT as a pest control tool and the differences between countries in regulating the mass-rearing, importation, and release of live organisms, some common rules might eventually be requested for the use of sterile insects in pest control. In this article, we review and examine the definition of sterile insects, the risks that may arise from their use, and the assurance of production quality and efficacy. Finally, we investigate how sterile insects compare to biological control agents, which are another type of insects deliberately released into the environment. We conclude that SIT based on insect irradiation can be used safely and that existing regulatory frameworks are sufficient to develop pragmatic registration procedures where those are needed.