A foul-smelling invader is marching ever forward across the United States, already posing a major threat to agriculture.

The brown marmorated stink bug is believed to have hitchhiked on a shipment of goods from Asia and was first spotted in Pennsylvania in 2001.

It has since rapidly spread to infest 33 states from coast to coast. When threatened, it releases a pungent odor that can best be described as that of cilantro.

But its voracious appetite for just about anything edible makes it an acute threat to farmers.

Last season, mid-Atlantic apple growers lost 18 percent of their crops to the bug.

The USDA is pinning its hopes on a wasp that has proven to be an effective predator against the stink bug in China, Japan and Korea.

Since predators that feed on native U.S. stink bugs are not going after the new Asian cousin, it may become forever necessary to breed and release sterilized swarms of the Asian wasps to control crop damage.

“The feeling in the bug world is this is the worst bug we’ve seen in 40 years,” University of Maryland entomologist Michael J. Raupp told The New York Times.

“It eats peaches and grapes and soybeans. And guess what? After it eats your crops, it comes inside your home.”

Photo: Penn State