Oct 14, 2020

Suterra has new Puffer design to bring California growers for aerosol mating disruption

Suterra announced Oct. 14 the launch of a new Puffer design available in California for the 2021 growing season to reduce navel orangeworm, codling moth and oriental fruit moth damage.

Borne out of Suterra’s commitment to continuous improvement to help solve grower problems, the new Puffer is the most durable and easiest to use aerosol mating disruption device ever made.

“More California growers are integrating pheromone mating disruption into their IPM programs because they are experiencing positive results,” Suterra Technical Field Manager Emily Symmes, said in a news release. “The improved durability and ease of deployment Suterra is delivering to growers with this new Puffer® design is exciting because it will encourage further adoption of this important IPM tool.”

“Suterra has been making aerosol Puffers for over a decade, and during that time we have been collecting, refurbishing and diagnosing how they perform for continuous design improvement in varying environmental conditions across millions of acres,” said Suterra Senior Engineering Manager Zak Clark, one of the inventors of the new Puffer.

Suterra’s new Puffer® is easier for growers to use, with a single mode of operation and single external button to simplify field preparation and deployment. The unit also weighs 60 percent less, making it easier to handle and less likely to drop in the field. Additionally, Suterra will be issuing growers a new device every year, recycling the spent can and device at the customer’s convenience.

The new device is also built to last in challenging field conditions and climates, with a life and safety rated drop-resistant design as well as a completely sealed compartment and unit head to protect the electronics from contaminants and prevent jams and friction. A temperature control feature ensures the Puffer performs in all weather conditions, automatically suppressing pheromone release when the temperature drops below the pest-specific threshold. The new device also has greater and more reliable power from half the number of batteries as the prior cabinet, using two outdoor-use batteries designed to withstand high temperatures.

“Our team at Suterra understands that our products protect growers’ livelihoods, and so we take quality incredibly seriously in our product design. We have a leading team of engineers and chemists with various backgrounds rooted in quality control. We came from sectors of the aerospace and defense, automotive, food and pharmaceutical industries where there is zero tolerance for defects,” said Clark. “The experience of our team and Suterra’s state-of-the-art, fully integrated manufacturing capabilities allow us to fulfill our commitment to quality. The pheromone is what does the work to protect your crops by reducing damage. That means that everything else about the product, from the chemistry, to the can, to the batteries, must be thoughtfully designed to get the right dose of pheromone out in every puff, in any conditions, all season long.”

Available for the 2021 growing season, the new Puffer design will be available for all of Suterra’s aerosol product line in California, including CheckMate Puffer NOW Ace, CheckMate® Puffer CM-O Pro Standard and Extended, CheckMate Puffer OFM-O and CheckMate® Puffer CM-OFM Pro.

The Puffer platform is part of Suterra’s pioneering portfolio of mating disruption products for pest control. Mating disruption is an effective, sustainable pest control solution used by growers all over the world. Naturally-occurring sex pheromones are released in the orchard to reduce adult males’ ability to find females. This disrupts the mating cycle, suppresses pest populations and helps address insecticide resistance without harming beneficial insects. As part of integrated pest management program, mating disruption can significantly reduce damage.

Pest control specialists and growers interested in learning more about the new Puffer® design and how mating disruption can reduce damage in their crops should contact their distributor or reach out to a Suterra sales representative by emailing [email protected].

Grower-owned by The Wonderful Company, Suterra is part of one of the world’s largest agricultural companies and the global leader in pheromone pest control products. Leveraging over 30 years of experience, Suterra produces hundreds of products used in growing regions across six continents, including over 400,000 acres in California.

Suterra’s state-of-the-art facility in Bend, Oregon integrates all aspects of the business under one roof: research and development, large-scale pheromone synthesis, product engineering and manufacturing. Suterra’s pest control solutions come in several different forms including proprietary aerosol emitters, sprayable formulations, passive membrane dispensers and specialized monitoring lures.

Suterra demonstrates its commitment to sustainability through the Clean Orchard Promise – a nationwide recycling and refurbishment program that ensures that no Puffer® materials remain in the fields at no additional cost to the grower.

For more information about Suterra, visit www.suterra.com.