In a proactive effort to identify pest management priorities and lay a foundation for future strategies, wine grape growers, commodity group representatives, pest control advisors, regulators, university specialists, and other technical experts from Oregon formed a work group and assembled a Pest Management Strategic Plan for Wine Grapes in Oregon, which was funded through an OWB research grant. Pest Management Strategic Plans (PMSPs) are widely recognized as a conduit for communication from growers and other industry practitioners to regulators and granting agencies. These documents give a realistic view of pest management issues and strategies used in the field, and provide a forum for agricultural producers and allied professionals to set meaningful research, regulatory and educational priorities.
Members of the group met in Portland for a day in February 2016 to document current pest management practices, critical needs, field activity and pest occurrence timetables and efficacy ratings of various management tools for specific pests in wine grape production. The final result, this PMSP, is a comprehensive strategic plan that addresses many pest specific critical needs for the wine grape industry in Oregon.
Wine grape researchers, educators, and others working in and with the industry will now be able to reference the critical needs identified in the PMSP as funding is pursued for projects designed to meet the specific pest management challenges identified as priorities to the industry. The detailed information in the PMSP will also be utilized by EPA as they conduct risk assessments and make other regulatory decisions potentially affecting the wine grape industry.
