One of the superior fruit commodities cultivated by Great Giant Foods (GGF) Terbanggi Besar, Central Lampung is crystal guava. The distinctive taste makes crystal guava fruit favored by the people of Indonesia and abroad. This has the potential to become the prima donna of export commodities from Indonesia.
There are 360 hectares of GGF crystal guava production area in Terbanggi Besar with an average annual production of 8,675 tons. One of the causes of decreased quality and production of crystal guava is fruit fly insect attack. Through the manufacture of devices can be a way to control the fruit fly.
Research and Development (R&D) GGF made a breakthrough by making one type of medicinal product to control fruit flies, which was named Latenol. Latentol is specially made with a distinctive aroma to snare male fruit flies. The aroma of Latenol can be smelled up to a radius of 10 Km.
Latenol has been released by R&D since October 2021 with a total production of 23,750 pieces (pcs). Latenol production in a day reaches 500 pcs with packaging in one pack there are 5 pcs. In 2022, the Protection R&D Division will produce 7000 pcs of Latenol per month based on the plantation’s demand.
Through the application of Latenol, GGF can save Rp. 840 million per year compared to the use of conventional trapping drugs from factory products. “Latenol has a cost of production of Rp. 6 thousand. If you calculate the plantation needs of 7000 pcs / month, the savings can reach Rp. 70 million per month, “said M. Basuki Sustainable Agrimaterial Development & Protection Manager.
The use of Latenol is very easy by using a wooden block hanging inside a mineral water bottle with holes for fruit flies to enter. The bottle is filled with enough water so that the fruit flies are trapped in the water and die.
“From what has been done, 12 percent of the catch is more than the factory product drugs that were used previously. In a hectare, as many as 20 pcs can be used with a maximum duration of use of 2 months,” concluded Nur Fadila, the Protection R&D team.
