Insect Science becomes Koppert’s preferred supplier for semiochemicals

Aug 06, 2025

Koppert has announced a strategic partnership with Insect Science, naming the company as its preferred supplier of semiochemical solutions. This collaboration marks a significant step forward in the development of sustainable pest management tools for farmers worldwide. The agreement was signed on 19 June 2025 in the Netherlands by Martin Koppert, chief business officer at Koppert, and Martin van Niekerk, technical and commercial director at Insect Science, representing a shared commitment to accelerate innovation in sustainable agriculture.

Insect Science is a pioneer in the development of semiochemical solutions: naturally occurring signaling compounds that insects use to communicate. By mimicking these chemical signals, it becomes possible to influence insect behavior in targeted ways, such as attracting pests into traps (monitoring and mass trapping) or disrupting mating life cycles (mating disruption). Insect Science’s strength lies in its dedicated R&D team, which combines deep expertise in applied entomology, chemical ecology and chemical synthesis to identify, recreate, and formulate these compounds for use in the field. Each solution is rigorously tested under real-world conditions to ensure reliability and effectiveness. Unlike conventional chemical pesticides, semiochemical solutions work with nature, offering high selectivity, low environmental impact, and compatibility with biological control programs, making them essential tools in Responsible Pest Management.

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Video: Spring 2026 weather outlook for Wisconsin; What an early-arriving El Niño could mean

Northeast Wisconsin is a small corner of the world, but our weather is still affected by what happens across the globe.

That includes in the equatorial Pacific, where changes between El Niño and La Niña play a role in the weather here -- and boy, have there been some abrupt changes as of late.

El Niño and La Niña are the two phases of what is collectively known as the El Niño Southern Oscillation, or ENSO for short. These are the swings back and forth from unusually warm to unusually cold sea surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean along the equator.

Since this past September, we have been in a weak La Niña, which means water temperatures near the Eastern Pacific equator have been cooler than usual. That's where we're at right now.

Even last fall, the long-term outlook suggested a return to neutral conditions by spring and potentially El Niño conditions by summer.

But there are some signs this may be happening faster than usual, which could accelerate the onset of El Niño.

Over the last few weeks, unusually strong bursts of westerly winds farther west in the Pacific -- where sea surface temperatures are warmer than average -- have been observed. There is a chance that this could accelerate the warming of those eastern Pacific waters and potentially push us into El Niño sooner than usual.

If we do enter El Nino by spring -- which we'll define as the period of March, April and May -- there are some long-term correlations with our weather here in Northeast Wisconsin.

Looking at a map of anomalously warm weather, most of the upper Great Lakes doesn't show a strong correlation, but in general, the northern tiers of the United States do tend to lean to that direction.

The stronger correlation is with precipitation. El Niño conditions in spring have historically come with a higher risk of very dry weather over that time frame, so this will definitely be a transition we'll have to watch closely as we move out of winter.