Fourteen years after it was first introduced, the biopesticide Green Muscle®, which uses the fungus Metarhizium anisopliae to kill pests, is still effectively targeting invasive locusts that threaten African farmlands.

Cassava green mite first came to Africa in the 1970s from South America, wreaking havoc on cassava farms and reducing yields by up to 80%. Read how a natural enemy helped tackle the menace.

The water hyacinth and other aquatic weeds, exotic species introduced to Africa, became pests when they started clogging waterways and water bodies. Fortunately, natural enemies or biocontrol agents were found by IITA to attack these pests.

A biopesticide from a fungus, Beauveria bassiana, developed by IITA is helping farmers in Benin go back to cabbage production after the diamondback moth ravaged their farms.

This guide on the ABCs of biocontrol adapted from the SP-IPM Research Brief no. 4 explains the various approaches in biological control.

Information on the banana genome and molecular tools to map traits are lacking. IITA is mapping and characterizing new molecular markers for use in banana breeding and genetics.

Christian Fatokun presents IITA’s guiding principles on the application of modern biotechnology on the improvement of mandate crops.

Manuele Tamò suggests that based on previous studies, the negative unintended effects of transformed crops on natural enemies and biodiversity are far less than those caused by repeated applications of synthetic pesticides.

Read about the award-winning approach that IITA extension specialists have adopted to strengthen knowledge of cocoa farmers on integrated crop and pest management techniques and practices.

This article discusses how endophyte-based technology is helping commercialize banana production in East Africa, and how partnerships with various public and private entities have contributed to the success of the R4D approach.