Mating disruption field experiments to control the vine mealybug, Planococcus ficus (Signoret) (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae), were carried out in 2008 and 2009 in two commercial vineyards in Sardinia (Italy). The effectiveness of mating disruption was evaluated by testing reservoir dispensers loaded with 100 mg (62.5 g/ha) and 150 mg (93.8 g/ha) of the sex pheromone in 2008 and 2009, respectively. The number of males captured in pheromone traps, the P. ficus population density and age structure, the parasitism rate, the percentage of ovipositing females, and the crop damage were compared between disrupted and untreated plots. In both field trials, the number of males captured in mating disruption plots was significantly reduced by 86% and 95%, respectively. Mating disruption at the initial dose of 62.5 g/ha of active ingredient gave inconclusive results, whereas the dose of 93.8 g/ha significantly lowered the mealybug density and modified the age structure, which showed a lower percentage of ovipositing females and a higher proportion of preovipositing females. Mating disruption did not affect negatively the parasitism rate, which was higher in the disrupted than in the control plots (>1.5-fold). Crop damage at harvest was very low in both field trials and did not differ between treatments. Mating disruption was effective in wide plots protected with dispensers loaded with 150 mg of the sex pheromone, showing its potential to be included in the overall integrated control programs in Mediterranean wine-growing regions.

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The enumerative sampling plan required 87 or 343 leaves to estimate the population density in extensive or intensive ecological studies respectively. Binomial plans would be more practical and efficient for control purposes, needing average sample sizes of 17, 20 and 14 leaves to take a pest management decision in order to avoid fruit damage higher than 1% in cultivars with big, medium and small fruits respectively.

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This work provides companies in the fresh-cut produce sector with an Ascorbate Bluetooth© Analyzer (ABA), a screen-printed sensor-based device for ascorbic acid (AA) detection, for quality control all along the supply chain. The amperometric detection of AA on fresh and fresh-cut parsley, under correct and incorrect storage temperature, allowed us to investigate the kinetics of AA decay in response to oxidative stress. The role of ascorbate oxidase (AOx) and ascorbate peroxidase (APx) was studied. ABA was used in situ by unskilled personnel. Treatments influenced AA decay kinetics, which were linear in fresh parsley, and non-linear in fresh-cut. Two hours at 28 °C immediately after chopping, the resilience of the fresh-cut parsley was reduced, even though the cold chain was restored. Two hours at −2 °C caused a rapid loss of AA until its complete decay after 72 h. Significant differences between treatments were observed in both the expression and activity of AOx and APx. ABA registered sudden changes of parsley AA following unpredicted variations of temperature during processing or transport. It was useful to remedy the effects of unexpected flaws in the cold chain, which can be proposed for quality preservation of different fresh-cut produce.

The apparent digestibility coefficients (ADCs) of the dry matter (DM), crude protein (CP), ether extract (EE), gross energy (GE), amino acids (AA), and the main fatty acids (FA) of four defatted insect meals in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) have been assessed. The tested meals were obtained from two yellow mealworms (Tenebrio molitor – TM1 and TM2), one black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens – HI) and one lesser mealworm (Alphitobius diaperinus – AD). The experimental diets were prepared by means of the substitution method, with each test ingredient included in the diet at 30% on an as fed basis and using Celite® as an inert digestibility marker. Eighty rainbow trout (140±5.6 g) were stocked in tanks connected to an open water system. Faeces were collected over four consecutive weeks using an automatic collection device after feeding the fish. The ADCs of the DM, CP and GE of the insect meals differed significantly, with the AD meal displaying the lowest values. The ADC of the EE in the different meals did not vary. As far as AA digestibility is concerned, the ADC of methionine changed according to the following pattern TM2=HI>TM1>AD, whereas the ADCs of cysteine and tyrosine were significantly lower in the AD meal than in the other meals. The ADCs of the main FAs (C12:0, C14:0, C16:0, C18:1 c9, C18:2 n-6 and C18:3 n-3) were higher than 85% and did not differ significantly in the insect meals. Overall, the tested insect meals resulted to be highly digestible and the differences among them depended on both the insect species and the specific production techniques of the meals. These results provide useful data that may be considered to properly formulate compound diets for rainbow trout using innovative protein sources.

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