2024–2025 Research and Results Highlights

Study looks at financial impact of spotted lanternfly

A first-of-its kind study by New York State Integrated Pest Management (NYSIPM) Agricultural Economist Allan Pinto found that New York’s grape industry could face losses of up to nearly $9 million annually as a result of invasive spotted lanternfly (SLF).  

Published in the Journal of Integrated Pest Management, the study, “Assessing the potential economic impacts of spotted lanternfly (Hemiptera: Fulgoridae) infestations on grape production in New York State,” used ongoing research from Pennsylvania State University, experiences from growers and assumptions about production and economic impacts to simulate a scenario in which farmers do not manage the pest. It estimated damages of $1.5 million in year one, $4 million in year two and $8.8 million in year three if SLF populations reach the same levels that Pennsylvania experienced during its first years of infestation and no management actions are taken.

The first SLF in the United States were detected in Berks County, Pennsylvania in 2014. The invasive species has now been confirmed in 17 states, including New York. The first population in the Finger Lakes was recorded in 2024.  

Pinto, who collaborated with NYSIPM Director Alejandro Calixto; Miguel Gomez, Robert G. Tobin Professor in Cornell University’s Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management; NYSIPM Associate Director Brian Eshenaur; and Pennsylvania State University researchers Michela Centinari and Flor E. Acevedo on the study, used acreage and production statistics as well as insight and data from growers and extension stakeholders to calculate potential worst-case-scenario losses.   

The Finger Lakes Region is the leading producer of wine in New York State, while the Lake Erie Region is the largest concord grape producer in the world. The study is important, as it highlights the potential damage of SLF on quality and yield without early detection and eradication. However, NYSIPM continues its efforts to ensure that growers, producers and regulatory agencies have access to the research and management techniques they need to prevent widespread loss.

NYSIPM Post Doctoral Research Associate Diana Obregon Corredor used New York’s booming apple industry for her study, sampling soil and flowers from 24 of the state’s more than 600 commercial apple farms to assess how macro-organisms–organisms that can be seen with the naked eye–are impacted by widespread pesticide use. 

Beneficial organisms are essential to the apple industry, with soil macro-organisms aiding in decomposition, nutrient cycling and pest suppression, and pollinators contributing to apple fruit set and size. However, Obregon Corredor’s research found that of the 79 reported active ingredients used to control pests on subject farms, 42 were found in the tested soil samples and 36 were found in sampled fruit flowers. 

The study concluded that due to pesticide spraying, populations of several macro-organisms, including earthworms, springtails and wild bees, were significantly reduced. In order to mitigate future loss, Obregon Corredor made several suggestions, including a reduction in the use of more problematic pesticides, rotating pesticide use based on toxicity, seeking alternatives with less persistence in the soil, using NYSIPM’s Network for Environment and Weather Applications to forecast pest and weather pressure and using NYSIPM’s Environmental Impact Quotient (EIQ) to identify the minimum effective amount of specific pesticides.