Key 14 days to eradicate fall armyworm, possible nationwide outbreak, 10,000 yuan reward for confirmed reports

The internationally recognized agricultural pest fall armyworm has officially landed in Taiwan, China. After fall armyworm invasions were confirmed one after another in corn fields in Miaoli, Yilan and Chiayi, the Executive Yuan urgently convened the first cross-ministerial meeting of the "Central and Local Fall Armyworm Disaster Response Team" this afternoon (the 12th) to further confirm the standard operating procedures for fall armyworm control and to plan a reporting reward and a compensation system after cases are confirmed.

Chen Chi-chung, Minister of the Council of Agriculture, said that the fall armyworm larvae found so far belong to the first generation, and that once they grow into flying adults after ten days, epidemic prevention will become even more difficult. In order to effectively seize this two-week critical "culling opportunity," from now on, as long as people find suspected cases in field areas and actively report them, and the cases are later identified as fall armyworm, they can receive a reward of 10,000 yuan.

In addition, crops in fields invaded by fall armyworm must all be cut down, and local governments will give farmers a certain amount of compensation in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Plant Protection and Quarantine Act; within three months, "epidemic area" production zones may also not plant any crops that might attract fall armyworm to feed, so the Council of Agriculture will provide farmers with compensation during the fallow period before crops are cleared and cultivation resumes, in accordance with fallow compensation measures. The Council of Agriculture calls on all citizens to actively report and jointly prevent the epidemic, "so that fall armyworm can be wiped out on the beachhead!"

Fall armyworm characteristics: "The head is brown with a yellow Y-shaped head suture line, and the last segment has four spots arranged in a square"