Overview of the programme to eradicate bactrocera carambolae in South America

Abstract

The carambola fruit fly (Bactrocera carambolae or CFF) was thought to be introduced in to Suriname in the 1960s or 1970s and first collected in 1975. An eradication programme based on the male annihilation technique (MAT) was developed and funded by IFAD (International Fund for Agricultural Development), the Netherlands, France and the United States and officially began in 1998. The programme worked in Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana and Brazil. By 2001, the distribution of B. carambolae was reduced to limited areas of Suriname and French Guiana. In 2002 funding was reduced and then halted. In the following years B. carambolae has expanded its distribution with detections as far southeast as Curralinho, in the Para state of Brazil, and as far north as Orlando, Florida, in the US. The closing of this programme before completion has resulted in increased cost to South American agriculture and increased risk to Central America, North America and the Caribbean. A coordinated programme amongst infested countries could still mitigate the risk of the spread of B. carambolae in the region.