UAF unveils new weed control agent

In a major breakthrough to control the Parthenium weed, also known as famine weed, CABI, the Agri Extension Institute and Entomology Dept University of Agriculture Faisalabad (UAF) have launched a biocontrol agent. Parthenium poses serious hazards to both human and animal health, biodiversity and food security in Pakistan. Stem boring weevils were released into the fields in Faisalabad.

Dr Ijaz Ashraf from UAF said, “Parthenium can cause severe allergic reactions in humans and livestock and may harbour malaria-carrying mosquitoes.” He added that parthenium was highly destructive, crossing continents and spreading rapidly in both rural and urban landscapes in the country. Hence, biological control of this weed is the need of the hour, he added.

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Deputy Director CABI Abdul Rehman said that five hundred stem-boring weevils (Listronotus steosipennis) were released to serve as a more sustainable approach to managing Parthenium, which is also known as ‘famine weed’ due to its impacts on food security. The weevil was approved for release in 2021 after host range testing in Pakistan to determine its safe use as a biological control agent to literally ‘nip Parthenium in the bud’, he added. “This breakthrough has been made possible through collaboration among CABI, PARC, NARC, UAF, universities in Swabi and Mardan as well as integration with the Plant wise Plus programme”.

Deputy Director CABI said that Parthenium is native to tropical America and was accidentally introduced into several countries. In Pakistan, it now covers thousands of hectares of productive land, posing a huge economic burden. He added.

Dr Naima Nawaz from UAF said that this weevil will help manage the spread of Parthenium in a more sustainable way.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 18^th, 2023.