Frusoal opens €515,000 citrus research lab, starting with a thrips pest study

Algarve fruit cooperative Frusoal has launched InovCitrus, a €515,000 research laboratory serving its citrus-growing members. Its first project is a three-year study, running 2026-2028, of the life cycle of Scirtothrips aurantii, a South African thrips classed as a quarantine pest in the EU and first found in Portugal in Tavira in December 2022. The insect scars fruit, mostly cosmetically but enough to block fresh sales, and Frusoal reports losses above 50% for growers, especially of lime and lemon. Researchers will track populations in orange, mandarin, lemon and lime orchards to inform better protection methods. The lab also aims to find uses for by-products and more sustainable cultivation practices.