Abstract:
Grain is the foundation of a country. Grain storage plays an important role in ensuring food security. One of the important tasks is the prevention and control of stored-grain pests during this process. Over several decades, phosphine fumigation has gradually become a major method in controlling stored grain pests across the world. However, the long-term use of chemical fumigants has led to the growing resistance of pests, and many stored grain pests have become extremely resistant to phosphine. Meanwhile, chemical residues of fumigants threaten human health. Recently, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs stated that a three-year action to "treat illegally, control drug residues and promote improvement" of edible agricultural products will be launched. The 10 existing highly toxic pesticides are phased out in batches, and aluminum phosphide is among them, which can generate phosphine gas. Based on such background of grain storage industry, to solve the problem of grain loss caused by pests in the process of grain storage, many researchers have conducted many innovative works, trying to find new, green, and safe prevention strategies. Among them, ozone is a strong oxidant, which is widely used in various fields by virtue of its easy access, low cost, sterilization and, and without residues. This review summarizes ozone production technologies, the insecticidal mechanism and the application status of ozone technology in the prevention and control of stored grain pests, and provides prospects for future applications.