“Pybuthrin May Be Complete Answer”

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30587, 2 November 1964, Page 9

“Pybuthrin May Be Complete Answer”

“Pybuthrin,” a mixture of pyrethrin and piperonyl butoxide, could well prove the complete answer where insect species develop resistance to purely synthetic insecticides, says Mr W. S. Allan, technical adviser to a large pharmaceutical and industrial chemical firm.

Pyrethrin is a dust obtained from a species of pyrethrum daisy, a plant of the chrysanthemum family, grown mainly in East Africa. Piperonyl butoxide, though in itself relatively harmless to insects, makes pyrethrin much more lethal to them. This enables the concentration of pyrethrin in the insecticide to be reduced greatly—a point of great importance since pyrethrin would otherwise be almost prohibitively expensive for many uses.

“Pybuthrins are made up with varying quantities of each component according to the species of insect to be killed,” says Mr Allan. “They kill insects which attack food without the risk of poisoning people or animals who eat the food. Premises can be treated if necessary while people are still working in them. Non-Poisonous

“Besides being non-poison-ous, pybuthrins cause less staining than most purely synthetic insecticides and are less odorous and non-taint-ing. They are effective

against larvae as well as adult insects.

“Pybuthrins are made up into an oil spray, an emulsion, an aerosol, or a powder. The best-known form in which pybuthrin appears on the New Zealand and world market is the household aerosol used primarily for the control of house-flies.”