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Stink bugs run amuck in 38 states and counting

Thursday, 05 July 2012 09:30
BY MIKE OLIVA
NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

Stink bugs may be visiting a town near you.

Congress is urging the Agriculture Department to find a killer for the Chinese-exported stink bug, which has made its way through 38 states and towards the Pacific coast.

In a recent house-passed 2012 Farm bill, $831,000 has been assigned to research of the stink bug and what can kill it.

The irritating stinkbugs have caused significant damage to agricultural products and have ruined apple, peach and grape harvests across the East Coast. The pest, which can bruise fruit with an undetectable bite, have Vineyard and Apple orchard operators worried their crops, according to the bill.

The bill passed the House unanimously and is expected to be approved by the Senate.

"Clearly these bugs are spreading and they are more than just a nuisance because they smell. They have the potential to devastate crops - apple crops, peach crops, grapes. We have to get a handle on it," explained Rep. Frank Wolf.

The stink bug is believed to have first reached the U.S. in shipping crates in 1998 when it was first spotted in Allentown, Pa, according the Daily News. The odorous insects get their name from the particularly overwhelming smell they release when irritated or squashed.

The pesticide DDT, which was banned by the Food and Drug Administration for its adverse affects, has been suggested for use, but the chemical remains controversial, according to the Christian Science Monitor.

Agriculture officials are also studying the use of a Chinese bee that has been known to lay its eggs in the eggs of a stink bug, according to the Washington Examiner.

For now, the search for an assassin continues.

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