Invasive Fruit Fly (IFF)

California has been experiencing an unusually high number of invasive fruit fly (IFF) detections – including the Mediterranean fruit fly, Oriental fruit fly, Queensland fruit fly and tau fruit fly. Notably, many of these IFF detections have triggered quarantines across numerous counties in California. The California Department of Food and Agriculture, in cooperation with the United States Department of Agriculture and County Agricultural Commissioners, has initiated local regulatory measures to eradicate and prevent the spread of these fruit fly species, as they are considered not established in California. Quarantines and their associated regulatory actions are implemented to stop the artificial spread of these pests and thus avoid additional negative impacts to growers and the state’s agriculture and natural resources.