The future of termite control

The USFS’ Don Fye fills a frame with concrete, while Craig Bell holds the PVC pipe in place. The capped pipe serves as an easy and repeatable means of accessing the test block while leaving the concrete slab in place. PHOTO: USFS

We’re proud to be the publication of record for the annual industry termiticide report, as prepared by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory, Durability and Wood Protection. Researchers gather data on the efficacy of termiticides in a controlled environment, reporting their information to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as part of the termite control product registration process. While the two new potential termiticides the team is testing are still top-secret as of press time, we look forward to the day they can break the news to pest management professionals — just like they’ve done in years past.

In the meantime, the industry’s current arsenal of termite control tools is quite strong, as evidenced by our focus on this segment. Better yet, the supplier participants in this section are nearly unanimous in their positive outlook for the future, which they foresee as realizing continual development of faster-acting, more-targeted and -efficacious protection from termites and other wood-destroying organisms.

Read more: USFS: Testing continues on 2 termiticide candidates