Canadian govt invests in green pest management technology

Minister of Canadian Heritage and Member of Parliament James Moore (Port Moody-Westwood-Port Coquitlam) announced an investment of over C$485,000 to SemiosBIO Technologies Inc. (SemiosBIO) to develop three value-added applications to help farmers improve pest management.

"Our government's top priority is the economy, and investments in innovation are key to ensuring our economy remains strong well into the future," said Minister Moore. "This project will help farmers apply new and innovative technology to deter pests, ensure better crops, and ultimately grow their business. This investment is great news for farmers and for BC's economy."

SemiosBIO will develop and test a pheromone tracking system for mating disruption pest control, a camera-monitored pest trap application to monitor insect population changes, and software for recording information. This innovative technology will improve safe pest management methods by enabling growers to monitor their crops and orchards for insect activity and take timely, targeted action with biopesticides, such as pheromones, or traditional pesticides if necessary.

"SemiosBIO is appreciative of the financial support it will receive from the Government of Canada," said Dr Michael Gilbert, President and Chief Scientific Officer for SemiosBIO Technologies Inc. "Our innovations will enable growers to adopt efficient, sustainable alternatives for pest management and provide them with precise monitoring and record-keeping capabilities."

The new technology will reduce manual labour costs and bring improvements to efficiency, productivity, crop management, and organic farming. It will help meet a growing regulatory and consumer demand for efficient, effective alternatives for pest management. Improved records management will also help open new markets for Canadian crops.

This project is funded under the Agricultural Innovation programme (AIP)-a C$50-million initiative announced as part of Canada's Economic Action Plan 2011. AIP is part of the government's commitment to help Canadian producers benefit from cutting-edge science and technology. AIP boosts the development and commercialsation of innovative new products, technologies, and processes for the agricultural sector.