Editorial: sixteenth edition of Latam Plagas

Without pause, but without hurry, at LATAMPLAGAS we maintain our commitment to the quality, timeliness and diversity of information disclosed. There are 21 Spanish-speaking countries, it is the fourth most spoken language in the world and 7.5% of the total population of the globe speaks Spanish. Of course, all of us in the professional pest management and environmental management industry are included. For all of them, our written contribution seeks to disseminate strategies and tools in accordance with the current times. In the era of communications, digitalization and artificial intelligence, technology must be incorporated without dying in the attempt. There are already remote monitoring systems and cameras with facial recognition of rodents to facilitate the counting of individuals in open populations. The identification of insect species through digital images is steadily increasing in accuracy. Data management and processing systems make companies more profitable and competent. However, simultaneously, the incorporation of people with skills and knowledge about maintenance and/or cleaning allows increasing efficiency and the spectrum of clients, prioritizing sanitary design, airtightness and reduction in food supply for different invasive species. Some time ago we stopped being simple pesticide applicators. Formulations intended for this industry occupy a variable proportion of use in professional pest management programs, depending on the area, organism to be controlled and type of client, among other things. In this sense, LATAMPLAGAS incorporates advertising and technical notes on the specific use of some molecules or formulations, along with scientific technical material generated by international references in the field. Having left behind… not so much, but behind at last, the pandemic has positioned our sector on another step. We have acquired greater visibility in relation to the health of diverse spaces and environments, it is everyone's obligation to promote a professional and integrated image towards the consumer market. We have to go through times where demand requires “insect or arachnid control” using harmless products and even “rodent control” without suffering, all of this undoubtedly pushes us to stay updated. Low environmental impact, animal welfare and greater biodiversity are three new paradigms that govern our activity. We hope that the content of this new issue is useful to you and contributes to your continued training. Eng. Guillermo J. Tarelli Professor Entomology FCA-UNLZ Environmental Health Manager CHEMOTECNICA S.A. EDITOR OF LATAMPLAGAS