Tuesday, 09 February 2016 11:49

Tau fly response ends

Written by 
Good news: MPI says they have lifted restrictions after no further Tau flies were found. Good news: MPI says they have lifted restrictions after no further Tau flies were found.

The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) has completed its response to the find of a single Tau fly in an Auckland suburb; no more of the flies found.

All restrictions on the movement of fruit and vegetables in Manurewa, were lifted at the weekend.

MPI surveillance manager Brendan Gould says two weeks of trapping, fruit sampling and testing have passed and no further Tau flies have been found.

The one fly found in a surveillance trap in January appears to have been a solitary traveller, he says.

On 22 January, the Ministry put in place a 1.5km diameter Controlled Area around where the single male Tau fly was found in a surveillance trap in the suburb of Manurewa. Residents were asked not to move certain fruit or vegetables outside of this zone. The move was precautionary while MPI carried out its intensive checks for any further flies. If a population had been present, the controls in place would have prevented any spread of the pest fly out of the area.

"MPI would like to sincerely thank the wider Auckland community, retailers in the area, and also the Auckland Council for the fantastic support throughout this operation," Gould says.

"This community help was vital. The Tau fly is a pest of a number of crops grown in New Zealand, both commercially and in home gardens, and we did not want it to establish here."

From today, residents will see the road signs go down and the disposal wheelie bins removed.

While the response operation is now over and New Zealand is officially Tau fly-free, MPI's routine checks for fruit flies will continue with its nationwide network of 7,600 fruit fly surveillance traps.

"This programme has proved its worth. On the rare occasions where fruit flies have managed to get through our rigorous border controls, they have been detected and, where necessary, eradicated."

For concerns about insects or larvae in fruit, contact MPI's pest and disease hotline – 0800 80 99 66.

More like this

Bikinis in cowshed

OPINION: An animal activist organisation is calling for an investigation into the use of dairy cows in sexuallly explicit content posted on social media and adult entertainment subscription site OnlyFans.

Editorial: Agri's mojo is back

OPINION: Good times are coming back for the primary industries. From sentiment expressed at Fieldays to the latest rural confidence survey results, all indicate farmer confidence at a near-record high.

Featured

$52,500 fine for effluent mismanagement

A Taupiri farming company has been convicted and fined $52,500 in the Hamilton District Court for the unlawful discharge of dairy effluent into the environment.

Ospri brings Bovine TB testing in-house

The move to bring bovine TB testing in-house at Ospri officially started this month, as a team of 37 skilled and experienced technicians begin work with the disease eradication agency.

National

Machinery & Products

» Latest Print Issues Online

The Hound

Arable advocacy?

OPINION: Spare a thought for the arable farmer, squeezed on one side by soft global prices and on the other…

Gaslight much?

OPINION: Labour leader Chris 'Chippy' Hipkins is carrying on the world-class gaslighting of the nation that he and his cohorts…

» Connect with Rural News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter