The dried fruit beetle (Carpophilus hemipterus) is considered a key pest of dates, infesting fruits both in the field and during storage. Control measures against the species rely on the use of chemicals or heat treatments based on sunlight, hot air or radio frequency (RF) applications. Previous investigations that have aimed to define control procedures for a total disinfestation using RF treatments with different exposure durations have shown the typical behavior of adults in some trials, which, under the influence of temperature increases, started to escape from infested fruits. We focused on the application of different RF voltage-time combinations to induce the emigration of C. hemipterus adults from dates in order to produce a complete disinfestation. The results showed that the application of 2500 V RF for 8-10 min to infested dates resulted in nearly 100% of adults escaping from fruits, thereby cleaning the commodity with low or no mortality inside and outside the dates. These achievements provide a new strategy for controlling key insect pests of dates that could be applied at an industrial scale, allowing for the quick disinfestation of fruits without affecting the fruit with harmful substances, such as residues from chemical treatments, and without unwanted side effects on date quality.
Keywords: RF treatment; emigration; heating rate; physical pest control; sap beetles.