Egg collecting has been critical to the success of the Helicoverpa resistance monitoring programs. Since 2007/08, the industry has engaged the services of the CCA in coordinating the regular collection of eggs by CCA members across a number of cotton growing regions. The partnership with CCA has assisted greatly in ensuring the monitoring programs have a reliable and quality supply of eggs from across more of the cotton industry.

The CCA developed a framework for engaging members from Emerald Queensland, to southern New South Wales, to make collections using a protocol provided by the NSW DPI and CSIRO monitoring programs. Researchers from the monitoring programs provide basic training for the participating members to ensure thorough knowledge and understanding of the tasks to be performed. CCA appointed a dedicated Project Manager to coordinate and administer the project as well as satisfy CRDC’s reporting requirements.