Pest Traps Cited as Critical to Safeguarding Agriculture Sector and Tourism Product

New smart traps installed islandwide to detect the presence of the Medfly and Tomato Leafminer pests, should they enter the country, are expected to be pivotal in safeguarding Jamaica’s agriculture sector and tourism product.

In November, 125 smart traps, valued $53 million, were installed by the Plant Quarantine Produce Inspection (PQPI) Unit of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining in partnership with the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF).

Identifier/Entomologist in the PQPI Unit in Kingston, Karen Barrett Christie, said the targeted pests are capable of destroying agricultural crops and can be detrimental to ornamental plants.

“We are a tourist country, and aesthetics are very important. Ornamental plants are minor hosts, but they are hosts, nonetheless. If they (pests) can’t find the fruits and vegetables, they will go on to the ornamentals; and that means that they will find their way into the fruits and vegetables, if they get [to] the ornamentals,” she told JIS News.

Ornamental or garden plants are primarily grown for their beauty. With agriculture contributing 8.3 per cent and tourism, more than nine per cent to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), protecting both sectors is critical to safeguarding ongoing investments and Jamaica’s economic future.

Mrs. Christie recalls the pest that severely impacted croton plants on the island.

“We do not see crotons as much as we used to, and that is because we had a croton scale [infestation] that devastated our crotons. Sometimes these little insects come in and cause so much damage, and because we don’t talk about it every day, it just seems as if it’s nothing. But they can really cause great damage as I said, not only to agriculture but also as it relates to our ornamentals,” she said.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Christie is urging persons to not tamper with the traps that have been installed.

She said these have been put in safe places that are secure, but there is still need to caution persons from giving in to their curiosities.

“A lot of times when we see something new, we want to explore it, see what this thing is about. But these traps are solely for insect purposes. They are not there to affect anybody. There’s no radiation, there is nothing there that will harm anybody. Really, the traps are just to ensure that we are very proactive in terms of our pest response,” Mrs. Christie stated.

She advised that, “one of the things that we’re in the process of doing is tagging the traps”.

“The tag will say ‘Property of Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining: Do Not Touch, Do Not Remove’. We want these traps to be strategic so that if a pest comes, we know that it’s here and we can put in our emergency response plan,” Mrs. Christie added.