Frequently Asked Questions
What does Insect Science do?
Insect Science develops Responsible Pest Managementâ„¢ solutions using semiochemical technologies, including lures and monitoring traps for agricultural, forestry, and household pests.
How do your products support long-term, Responsible Pest Managementâ„¢?
Our solutions use semiochemicals (species-specific chemical signals) to manage pest populations in a targeted way. Because they are highly specific, they protect beneficial insects, leave no harmful residues on crops, support integrated pest management (IPM) programmes, and help reduce the need for broad-spectrum insecticides, making them well-suited for long-term, sustainable pest management.
Where is Insect Science based?
We are headquartered in Tzaneen, South Africa, with a satellite office in Paarl, supplying products locally and to select international markets.
What are semiochemicals?
Semiochemicals are naturally occurring chemical signals that pests use to communicate. Our products use these signals to attract, monitor, or disrupt pest behaviour.
What types of pests do your products target?
We provide solutions for a range of pests including fruit flies, moths, beetles, borers (e.g., PSHB), and other agriculturally important species.
Do you sell insect traps and lures separately or together?
Most traps and lures are sold separately so that customers can select the combination suited to their monitoring needs.
How long do your lures last?
Most lures last 4-8 weeks, depending on formulation, climate, and placement. Product-specific labels (found as downloadable PDFs on the website and available on request) include exact longevity.
Are your products registered?
All our commercially available products are registered under Act 36 in South Africa, and meet the relevant regulatory requirements in the countries where they are sold. Certain lures may still be undergoing registration or may be supplied for research purposes only.
Do you offer technical support for product installation and usage?
Yes, each product has a downloadable PDF guide, and our technical team is available for assistance. Find their details on our website’s contact page.
Do you sell directly to the public?
We sell through select distributors such as Hybrid Agri, Elephant Vert, Precision Farming, AECI, Expifin, Farmers Agri-Care, Inteligro, Koppert, Laeveld Agrochem, Nexus, Novon, RealIPM, Viking, and Wenkem.
Can I get a quote online?
Quotes are not generated automatically on our website. Please submit an inquiry outlining your requirements, and one of our consultants will provide pricing tailored to your needs.
Why are prices not shown online?
Because products are bought tailored to specific monitoring programmes, pricing depends on quantity, crop, and application area.
Do you provide tax invoices?
Yes. Once an order is placed through our formal ordering process, a tax invoice is automatically generated.
Do you offer international shipping?
We can ship internationally for approved products. Some lures require special permits depending on the destination country.
Do I need an account to download product information?
No. All technical data sheets and product label PDFs are publicly available. Should you not find what you were looking for, please request it from us directly.
Is your website GDPR and POPIA compliant?
Yes. We follow international and South African data protection laws and only use customer information to process inquiries and orders.
Do you provide recommendations on how many traps to use?
Yes. Our technical team can provide trap density recommendations tailored to your crop type, pest species, and monitoring needs.
Do your products help with both monitoring and control?
Yes, but through distinct product categories and application strategies:
The PheroLure® range is primarily used for population monitoring. When paired with trap systems (such as Delta Trap®, Bucket Funnel Trap®, or McPhail Trap), these lures are used to detect early pest presence, track seasonal population trends, inform spray timing and IPM decisions, and measure the effectiveness of control programmes. Monitoring systems are deployed at low trap densities per hectare, because the objective is detection and data collection, not population suppression.
Our control strategies use semiochemicals at higher densities or in specialised formulations to actively reduce pest populations. These include mass trapping, where high-density trap networks remove large numbers of pests; mating disruption, where dispensers such as X-Mate® prevent successful mating; attract-and-kill products like Last Call™, which draw pests to a lethal formulation; and bait stations that target specific species, often focusing on females to reduce egg laying. In these applications, semiochemicals move beyond detection and are used to directly suppress pest populations.
The PheroLure® range is primarily used for population monitoring. When paired with trap systems (such as Delta Trap®, Bucket Funnel Trap®, or McPhail Trap), these lures are used to detect early pest presence, track seasonal population trends, inform spray timing and IPM decisions, and measure the effectiveness of control programmes. Monitoring systems are deployed at low trap densities per hectare, because the objective is detection and data collection, not population suppression.
Our control strategies use semiochemicals at higher densities or in specialised formulations to actively reduce pest populations. These include mass trapping, where high-density trap networks remove large numbers of pests; mating disruption, where dispensers such as X-Mate® prevent successful mating; attract-and-kill products like Last Call™, which draw pests to a lethal formulation; and bait stations that target specific species, often focusing on females to reduce egg laying. In these applications, semiochemicals move beyond detection and are used to directly suppress pest populations.
Can your products replace pesticides?
Our solutions are meant to complement integrated pest management (IPM) programmes. Some growers reduce pesticide use significantly, but full replacement depends on the crop and pest pressure.
Do you attend trade shows or farmers' days?
Yes. We regularly participate in farmers’ days, research events, and industry conferences. We believe that innovation is fostered through collaboration.
Do you offer field demonstrations?
Field support is available in selected regions. Please contact us to arrange a demonstration or visit.
