The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has signed an agreement with the Food Corporation of India (FCI) to conduct trials on alternative post-harvest pest control methods in FCI storage facilities. According to reports from Business Standard, these methods will use nitrogen gas, carbon dioxide (CO2) and a synergistic combination of CO2 and phosphine as alternatives to the widely used aluminium phosphide (ALP) and malathion. The partnership aims to address critical challenges facing India's grain storage infrastructure.
As reported by Business Standard, India's critical grain reserves have relied heavily on aluminium phosphide (ALP) and malathion for post-harvest pest control for decades. However, widespread and repeated use of these chemicals has led to severe consequences, including pest resistance frequencies reaching 72-100 per cent in key Indian states and escalating fumigation cycles that drive up operational costs. The current chemical methods also pose significant respiratory threats to workers and long-term ecological risks.
According to the official statement reported by Business Standard, the two bodies will undertake three major joint trials in the first phase. The first trial involves nitrogen gas fumigation in wheat stored in metal silos, while the second trial focuses on combined carbon dioxide and phosphine gas fumigation for managing and controlling storage pests in wheat and rice stored in bags at warehouses. The third trial will test carbon dioxide fumigation for managing and controlling storage pests in wheat and rice in bags enclosed in hermetic covers.
As reported by Business Standard, after the two-year Phase I pilot, Phase II will expand into a one-year multi-location trial across varied agro-climatic zones to establish region-specific standard operating procedures (SOPs). This phased approach aims to ensure comprehensive testing and validation of the alternative methods before widespread implementation across FCI's storage network.
