Alternative technologies to combat crop infestation

The EU Framework Programm Lilleengen has developed a non-pesticide  method to cope with cabbage flies, which damage the crops of cauliflower, broccoli and cabbage. As the EU discusses about banning around 20 pesticides, scientists try to discover new ways to battle crop infestation.

As Small Holder explains, the substance Fertibug, developed by Lilleengen, combines a fertilizer based on the fibrous byproducts of biogas production with an algae that the flies cannot stand. Therefore it also nourished the plants while protecting them. Fertibug was already tested in Spain and Hungary with very good results in yield increase per hectare. The developers hope, their new method will become popular among organic as well as conventional farmers as an alternative to toxic pesticides.