TNAU devices a ‘pitfall’ for flour, millet pests

After the successful roll-out of Probe Trap for trapping insects in grains, the Tamil Nadu Agri University (TNAU) here has come up with another gadget, a ‘Pitfall Trap’ to do away with pests in flour, spice powders and minor millets.

“This will bring huge relief to those who who store flour , spice powders and minor millets in bins or bag, and sieve the flour before use,” according to S Mohan, Professor, Department of Agricultural Entomology, TNAU.

Insect problem in flour and powdered food items is a given. People usually discard the flour if they find it infested with insects or other pests. But the pitfall trap can help avoid waste. It works like a probe trap used in grains but is modified to trapinsects in flour and minor millets, he said.

A perforated top lid is fitted to a cylindrical tumbler-shaped container with a fine sieve at the bottom. A rod is fitted to the top of the lid to insert the trap inside the flour or spice powder container.

Insects generally surface for air, so the trap should be inserted into the container. The pest will fall through the perforation on the top of the tumbler and settled over the sieve portion at the bottom. Any spill over flour into the trap can be sieved by shaking the trap unit, he explained.

The TNAU is yet to start commercial production of the trap but enquiries are coming from millers. The device is simple to use, chemical-free and helps in early detection of insects, he said and added that the device will be priced between ₹140 and ₹150.

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