May 13, 2020

California agriculture presence increased by pest control firm Suterra

Bend, Oregon-based Suterra, a sustainable pest control company, announced the opening of a new office in Fresno, California and the doubling in staff of its California-based technical team.

According to a news release, Suterra is increasing its presence to support growers and pest control advisers seeking innovative pest management practices to improve crop quality and reduce insecticide resistance. The use of these innovative practices, particularly mating disruption, is growing significantly in California. As the manufacturer of California’s most widely used mating disruption products, Suterra supports its product distributors and their growers with field consultations, mapping, deployment training, and education.

The new office in North Fresno will serve as a central hub for the company’s many California-based staff members. Suterra is furthering its commitment to growers and distributors in California by bolstering the company’s presence in this key agricultural region.

“Suterra is bringing more boots on the ground in California to help farmers grow a cleaner, more profitable crop,” said Suterra’s Area Director Carlos Bassa. “Serving as a base for our larger team, our new Fresno office will allow Suterra to more effectively support distributors and growers.” Bassa continued, “Part of why we selected this particular location is its proximity to many of our valued distribution partners.”

Among the newly doubled staff is Emily Symmes, Ph.D. Symmes joins Suterra as Technical Field Manager. Prior to joining Suterra, Symmes earned her B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees in entomology from the University of California (UC) in Riverside and Davis. Most recently, Symmes served as the UC Cooperative Extension (UCCE) Area IPM Advisor in the Sacramento Valley and as Associate Director of Agriculture for the Statewide IPM Program.

In her farewell announcement to the University of California Symmes wrote, “I look forward to continuing my relationships with the agricultural industry in California, as well as the University, to bring effective, economic, and sustainable pest management solutions to our industry.”

Suterra also recently hired Greg Montez as a Technical Field Manager. Montez is respected in the industry and spent 20 years as a Research Associate at the University of California’s Kearney Agricultural Research and Extension Center with a specialty in citrus insect pest management. In the private sector, Montez worked as a technical sales manager with an emphasis on pheromone pest control and for Eurofins Agroscience Services where he did field and laboratory trials for companies registering new agricultural chemicals.

Symmes and Montez are part of a growing California technical team, which includes long-time Wonderful pest control adviser Mando Perez and former UC researcher Sara Goldman. Suterra has more entomologists and chemists on staff than any mating disruption company in the U.S. to support its industry-leading innovation in pheromones and other semiochemicals.

Owned by one of the world’s largest agricultural companies, The Wonderful Company, Suterra will continue to invest in its research teams, engineering, and field development to deliver new active ingredients and products to support the industry.

Grower-owned by The Wonderful Company, Suterra is part of one of the world’s largest agricultural companies and the global leader in pheromone pest control products. Leveraging over 30 years of experience, Suterra produces hundreds of products used in growing regions across six continents, including over 400,000 acres in California.

Suterra’s state-of-the-art facility in Bend, Oregon integrates all aspects of the business under one roof: research and development, large-scale pheromone synthesis, product engineering, and manufacturing. Suterra’s pest control solutions come in several different forms including proprietary aerosol emitters, sprayable formulations, passive membrane dispensers, and specialized monitoring lures.

For more information about Suterra, please visit www.suterra.com.