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SACRAMENTO, September 6, 2024 – A portion of Alameda County has been placed under quarantine for the Mediterranean Fruit Fly (Medfly) following the detection of one wild mated female in Fremont. The USDA, the Alameda County Agricultural Commissioner, and CDFA are working collaboratively on this project.
CDFA has successfully eradicated each and every detected Medfly infestation in California history, dating back more than 40 years.
The quarantine area in Alameda County measures approximately 71 square miles, bordered on the north by CA-84; on the south by the boundary between Alameda-Santa Clara counties; on the west by the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge; and on the east by Calaveras Creek. A link to the quarantine map may be found here: https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/plant/medfly/regulation.html
The eradication approach used in this project is the standard Medfly program used by CDFA and is the safest, most effective, and most efficient response program available.
This current project is new and distinct from recently eradicated invasive fruit fly infestations in Santa Clara, Sacramento, Contra Costa, Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Ventura counties. The last Medfly quarantine in Alameda County was in 1981.
Sterile male medflies will be released in the area as part of the eradication effort. The release rate will be 250,000 males per square mile per week in a 39 square mile area around the infestation. In addition, properties within 200 meters of detection sites are being treated with an organic formulation of Spinosad in order to help reduce the density of the population. Finally, fruit removal will occur within 100 meters of properties with mated females, larval detections, and/or multiple adult detections.
The sterile fly release program has a proven track record of success in California. Sterile male flies mate with fertile female flies in the natural environment, but produce no offspring. The fly population decreases as the wild flies reach the end of their lives with no offspring to replace them, ultimately resulting in eradication of the pest. Sterile male Medflies are provided by a joint CDFA/USDA sterile insect rearing facility in Los Alamitos, which prepares sterile flies for release every day as an exclusionary measure over the Los Angeles basin.
The quarantine will affect any growers, wholesalers, and retailers of susceptible fruit in the area as well as local residents. Home gardeners are urged to consume homegrown produce on site and not move it from their property. However, residents living in the quarantine area may consume or process (i.e. juice, cook, or grind in the garbage disposal) fruit on the property where it was picked, or they may dispose of fruit by double-bagging it and placing it in their regular trash bins (not green waste). These actions protect against the artificial spread of the infestation to nearby regions where it could affect California’s food supply and backyard gardens.
The Medfly is known to target more than 250 types of fruits and vegetables. Damage occurs when the female lays eggs inside the fruit. The eggs hatch into maggots that tunnel through the flesh of the fruit, making it unfit for consumption. Residents who believe their fruits and vegetables are infested with fruit fly larvae are encouraged to call the State’s toll-free Pest Hotline at 1-800-491-1899 or email reportapest@cdfa.ca.gov.
While fruit flies and other invasive species that threaten California’s crops and natural environment are sometimes detected in agricultural areas, the vast majority are found in urban and suburban communities. The most common pathway for these invasive species to enter our state is by “hitchhiking” in fruits and vegetables brought back illegally by travelers as they return from infested regions of the world. To help protect California’s agriculture and natural resources, CDFA urges travelers to follow the Don’t Pack a Pest program guidelines (https://www.dontpackapest.com/).
Residents with questions about the project may call CDFA’s Pest Hotline at 1-800-491-1899. Photos and additional information may be found here: https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/plant/pdep/target_pest_disease_profiles/mediterranean_ff_profile.html
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