Look out for updates on fall armyworm detections from all of the Seed & Grain Readiness and Response partners. If you can manage it at this busy time, stay on top of your email updates and don’t be afraid to ask questions or ask for help,” Colin says. “This response is going to require a team effort from everyone involved. These reports will contribute to Better Border Biosecurity ‘s (B3) research and understanding of survival, distribution and potential impacts of this pest in New Zealand. Over 200 traps have been established across the maize and sweetcorn growing regions and farmers and growers are being asked to look out for eggs or caterpillars, and even report ‘no findings’ at the end of each month. “We’ll be doing our best to support farmers and growers with information and trying to make sure they have the right insecticides as tools to manage this plant pest.”īiosecurity New Zealand is doing what it can to identify patterns for fall armyworm in New Zealand’s environment. “The repercussions this could have on feed supply is something we need to be preparing for, not just in arable but across the primary sector.

“We’re concerned for our farmers and growers in these regions, especially those growing maize and simultaneously battling flooding impacts on their crops,” Federated Farmers Arable Industry Group Chair and board biosecurity spokesperson Colin Hurst says. Since then, detections have also been in the upper North Island regions and have been fairly stable over the colder months given that the pest thrives in warmer climates. Sweetcorn and maize are a preferred source of food for the pest, but it can eat over 350 different plant species.įall armyworm adult moths and larvae are highly mobile, which is why the pest is thought to have arrived in New Zealand in February 2022 by strong winds from Australia.

These confirmed findings come from Northland, Auckland, Waikato and north Taranaki regions of the North Island on sweetcorn and maize crops.

Download armyworm caterpillars