WA FRUIT growers could soon have one more weapon against the state’s most serious fruit fly pest, the medfly (Ceratitis capitata).
The WA Department of Agriculture and Food (DAFWA) and Oxford University spin-out company Oxitec are set to trial the effectiveness of a genetically modified medfly.
They hope this new breed can help growers combat a pest which costs between $10-14 million annually to control and spoils up to 15 per cent of fruit crops.