The Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) has started drone and manual spraying of insecticide to combat the highly destructive red-striped soft scale insect (RSSI) in the sugarcane fields of Isabela, Negros Occidental.
“We started our RSSI drone and manual spraying of insecticide last week in several barangays in Isabela. The whole of Negros is affected, so the spraying will continue in other areas,” Sugar Board Member David Andrew Lizares Sanson said Sunday, June 14.
The spraying of fungus to fight the RSSI also started last month, he added.
Sanson said he is waiting for an update on the total areas affected and treated areas so far.
An SRA report released on June 4 showed that the RSSI has hit 1,788.93 hectares of standing sugarcane across Negros and Panay, affecting 869 farmers in 172 barangays.
Negros Occidental was the hardest-hit province, accounting for 1,586.90 hectares, followed by Negros Oriental with 134.20 hectares, Iloilo with 45.80 hectares, and Capiz with 22.03 hectares.
The RSSI is a highly destructive, sap-sucking agricultural pest that primarily targets sugarcane. It damages the crops through a devastating two-part assault: first, it inserts piercing mouthparts into the leaves to continuously drain the plant’s vital, nutrient-rich sap, causing the foliage to yellow, wilt, and dry up.
The insect then excretes a sticky, sugary waste called honeydew, which coats the leaves and fuels the rapid growth of a black fungus known as sooty mold. This dark fungal layer blocks out sunlight and halts photosynthesis, severely stunting the cane’s growth, drastically reducing the sucrose content of the harvest.*
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