Controlling the Western Corn Rootworm in Germany

The western corn rootworm (Diabrotica virgiferai) that has damaged corn farms in North America and in many countries of Southern and Eastern Europe could reach Germany in a matter of time. The damage and the cost in controlling the pest amounted to around one billion US dollars in the USA. If it reaches Germany, current estimates by the Julius Khun Institute in Braunschweig show that it could affect 350,000 hectares of corn fields costing EUR 25 million per year. In order to prevent the spread of the pest in Germany, seeds were treated with an insecticide with the active ingredient Clothianidin. This resulted in deaths of thousands of bee colonies in areas where the treated seeds were sown. In the USA, however, the pest is effectively controlled by using genetically-modified corn containing a special variant of the Bt toxin which specifically targets the larvae of the Western corn rootworm as well as that of the European corn borer.

There are already first release trials with Diabrotica-resistant lines taking place in Spain, Eastern Europe and Germany, but are unlikely to be introduced in the European market in the next few years. In the meantime, as a temporary measure, farmers are breaking up the pest pressure by crop rotation with cereals or leaf crops, but not really eradicating the pest.

For details of the report, see:  http://www.gmo-safety.eu/en/news/655.docu.html