Award

The long-term aim of this project is to provide growers of honeybee-dependent crops and commercial beekeepers with SPLAT Bloom and SuperBoost, two semiochemical-based products to improve the health and performance of pollinators in US crop fields. Applied together, these two products will provide a safe and effective means to 1) improve the pollination performance of honeybee colonies by focusing their foraging activity within the target crop; 2) help to prevent the loss of these vital insects to accidental exposure to pesticides (as a result of honeybees venturing beyond the target field and into surrounding areas that may have been contaminated by harmful chemicals); and 3) bolster the health and resilience of honeybee hives by encouraging higher levels of foraging among worker bees. In light of the declines in availability of commercial honeybee hives as well as the growing obstacles for achieving effective crop pollination in today's demanding agricultural systems, SPLAT Bloom and SuperBoost will be extremely valuable tools to improve yield and quality for a variety of bee-pollinated crops, resulting in a positive economic impact for growers both in the US and worldwide.