INIA Quilamapu develops new bait to protect Chilean forestry exports

INIA Quilamapu has launched a 24-month project to optimize and mass-produce Lignitrap, an innovative high-specificity bait designed to manage the pine bark beetle (Hylurgus ligniperda). The initiative aims to facilitate the detection and control of this pest, which poses a significant phytosanitary risk to Chilean pine forestry exports.

Financed by the National Agency for Research and Development (ANID), the project is a strategic alliance between the technological institute INIA and private sector partners, including Consorcio de Protección Fitosanitaria Forestal S.A. (CPF) and the local company Biobichos. Developed in the Chemical Ecology Laboratory in Chillán, the bait will be used in traps to mitigate risks associated with the internal movement and international shipment of wood products.