January 9, 2020

Research tie-up to develop innovative spraying technology for cattle fever ticks

US research entities 4Ry Inc. and Texas A&M AgriLife Research have signed a research agreement and will collaborate with the USDA's chief scientific in-house research agency, the Agricultural Research Service (ARS), to more efficiently and effectively spray cattle to eliminate cattle fever ticks,which are vectors of pathogens causing bovine babesiosis, also known as cattle tick fever.

The project will adapt 4Ry's Charge Injected Precision Spraying (ChIPS)™ for conductive fluids. Many pesticides registered to spray cattle are water-based, which makes them conductive.

Dr. Arnold Kelly, 4Ry's chief technology officer and cofounder, who invented the company's charge-injected atomization and spraying technologies, will modify 4Ry's patented Spray Triode Atomizer, the heart of the ChIPS system. The ChIPS system allows for more complete and targeted coverage of cattle with fewer environmental and operator health hazards.

Charged spray droplets are attracted to the cow and thoroughly coat all areas with little aerosol drift or overspray. By reducing the amount of fluid sprayed and wasted, ChIPS more efficiently covers cattle, generates substantial cost savings, and reduces health and environmental risks.

"Successful development of our sprayer for conductive fluids will allow ranchers to integrate this technology for sustainable eradication of the invasive fever ticks that cost the cattle industry millions of dollars before they were eliminated from the US", said David Bird, 4Ry's CEO.

He noted that the tick problem is particularly bad in South Texas counties that border Mexico. "Our modified sprayer will also improve management of other livestock pests, so it will be welcomed wherever those pests are found in association with cattle production".

Dr. Pete Teel, entomologist at Texas A&M AgriLife Research and who will lead the project and provide administrative guidance, said Texas A&M AgriLife Research and the USDA-ARS have a long history of dedicated joint research efforts in support of the US cattle industry and the regulatory agencies responsible for the US Cattle Fever Tick Eradication Programme.

"The opportunity to collaborate with 4Ry Inc. on the development and application of this new technology could significantly improve how cattle receive acaricide treatment to prevent the re-establishment of cattle fever ticks in the US", he said of the project's significance.

Texas A&M AgriLife is the agricultural and life sciences research agency of Texas state and a part of the Texas A&M University System. It is the largest comprehensive agriculture programme in the US.