A fruit fly controlled area has been set up in Papatoetoe, South Auckland. Photo: RNZ / Maia Ingoe
The search for more oriental fruit flies is continuing in South Auckland after the insect was found in a Papatoetoe surveillance trap on Friday.
Strict fruit and vegetable movement restrictions would remain in place in parts of Papatoetoe and Māngare for at least a fortnight.
Restrictions have been placed on two zones, within a 200-metre (Zone A) and 1.5-kilometre (Zone B) radius from the location where the insect was found on Gray Avenue.
Biosecurity NZ said its staff are on the ground checking surveillance traps and collecting fruit and vegetable waste from special disposal bins.
Mike Inglis, Biosecurity Commissioner North, with a new sign showing the secured fruit fly area in Papatoetoe. Photo: RNZ / Maia Ingoe
Biosecurity NZ regional Commissioner North, Mike Inglis, said residents in the two zones were being asked to put their produce waste into the bins.
He said every household in Zone A would have a disposal bin, and in Zone B, there would be about 34 bins placed around the edge of the zone, primarily on major transport routes and a further 75 placed within the zone.
Inglis said a mobile laboratory was also set up yesterday to examine disposed produce for oriental fruit fly larvae and eggs.
"The mobile lab work and checking of fruit helps to provide us with an extra layer of certainty that there are no other fruit flies out there."
Biosecurity NZ thanked the local community their co-operation.
As of Monday more than 150 staff were contributing to the response including biosecurity, scientific and laboratory, trade, and public information tasks.
Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
