Chris Thompson: breeding good insects to get bad insects

Photo: Horticulture New Zealand

Local food growers are increasingly employing beneficial insects as biocontrol agents to keep pests and diseases in check, meaning less reliance on pesticides. At Bioforce in Karaka, rural south Auckland, insects are bred and sent out to growers of everything from tomatoes and pot plants to chicken farms. More and more pests are turning up on our shores, making finding other insects - including natives - to combat them urgent work. 

Chris Thompson is general manager of Bioforce, a company his father founded 23 years ago. He is a board member of the Royal New Zealand Institute of Horticulture Education Trust and a technical advisor to A Lighter Touch, a programme funded by the Ministry of Primary Industries to increase collaboration across the horticulture, arable and wine sectors to see more sustainable approaches to crop protection. 

Aphidius is a small parasitic wasp that specialises in parasitising aphid species.

Mite-E, a predatory mite that feeds on other mites. Known to be useful in both greenhouse and outdoor crops, such as rose, orchid, bean, capsicum and strawberry.

High infestations of greenhouse whitefly can have a severe impact on greenhouse crops. Enforce is a tiny parasitic wasp that specializes in parasitising whitefly.

Mite-E is a predatory mite that feeds on other plant-feeding mites.

Mite-A pictured with a thrip larvae. Mite-A are known to be useful on greenhouse crops such as tomato, cucumber, pepper and ornamental plants.

A Tasman Lacewing with an aphid. These Lacewing are known to be useful in indoor and outdoor crops such as, capsicum, cucumber, citrus, and other ornamentals

Tasman lacewing larvae with aphid.