Citrus psyllid knocking on California's door
Citrus psyllid knocking on California's door
The California citrus industry, in cooperation with the California Department of Food & Agriculture, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, SAGARPA (the Mexican ministry of agriculture) and other agencies, has gone into a full- court-press defensive posture in an effort to delay the entrance into California of a tiny insect pest called the Asian citrus psyllid after the pest was found June 26 in citrus trees in Tijuana, Mexico, just four blocks from the U.S.-Mexico border.
Asian citrus psyllid can transmit a devastating citrus disease commonly called "citrus greening" that has already caused extensive damage and financial loss in Florida.
Citrus greening, officially known as huanglongbing, which is Chinese for "yellow dragon disease," is present in many countries around the world but is a recent arrival in the United States. A USDA news release dated Jan. 11 stated that 28 Florida counties were under federal quarantine for citrus greening. The quarantine requires that specific certification requirements be met before fruit is shipped to other citrus-producing states.
The disease is harmless to humans, but it damages trees and ruins the flavor of the fruit or juice. "Once infected, there is no cure for a tree with citrus greening," according to USDA.
The USDA had also placed a quarantine for the Asian citrus psyllid for all of Florida and 32 counties in Texas as well as Hawaii, Guam and Puerto Rico, although so far the citrus greening disease had been found only in Florida, according to the USDA release.
The psyllid, the only known transmitter of citrus greening, was detected at the southern tip of Baja California Mexico, about a year ago, and leaders in the California citrus industry felt it was just a matter of time before it would arrive at and cross the U.S. border.
But "it was quite surprising that it moved from the tip of Baja up to Tijuana in such a short period of time," Joel Nelsen, president of California Citrus Mutual, told The Produce News July 22.
In anticipation of its arrival, "we as an industry, in conjunction with the [CDFA], had a crisis management plan" already in place, Mr. Nelsen said. But implementation of the plan was triggered "sooner than we had planned on."
The problem is "incredibly serious, in the fact that [the pest] is just right across the border from San Diego County and there are prevailing winds" that blow from Tijuana into San Diego County and as far north as Ventura County, said Ted Batkin, president of the California Citrus Research Board. Even without the winds, the psyllid is a strong flyer and is capable of flying two to three miles "when it is out foraging," he said. "We know the psyllid moves very rapidly across long distances, so we know it is not going to stay in Tijuana very long - if it hasn't crossed already. "
Fortunately, the psyllids that have been trapped have been found to be free of citrus greening disease, "but that is just so far," Mr. Batkin said. When Asian citrus psyllid was first detected in Florida in 1999, the disease was not present, but it showed up a few years later and "quickly spread throughout the whole state."
The first phase of the action plan has been extensive trapping north of the border to try to determine if any of the psyllids are already present in California. Meanwhile, in Tijuana, APHIS International Services, which is comprised of Mexican nationals working for USDA, is treating trees south of the border "to lower the [psyllid] populations" in an effort "to slow down any further movement," Mr. Batkin said. "They work in conjunction with SAGARPA ... and SAGARPA is as worried about this as we are. Everybody knows what this is and that it is a death sentence [for the citrus industry]. Nobody is taking this lightly."
A major educational effort to solicit the cooperation of the public is also part of the action plan, according to Mr. Nelsen.
The industry is also working with chemical companies to develop local registrations for chemicals suitable for controlling the pest, he said.
"Notwithstanding the initial shock" upon hearing the news of the psyllid find in Tijuana, "so far ... the news has been positive," said Mr. Nelsen. "No major infestation has been determined. Each psyllid that has been tested has been found negative of HLB," and so far, no psyllids had been found in San Diego County.
"But everybody from Florida will tell you it is only a matter of time," added Mr. Nelsen. "I am hopeful that we can keep the psyllid out of the state for a while longer."
Asian citrus psyllid can transmit a devastating citrus disease commonly called "citrus greening" that has already caused extensive damage and financial loss in Florida.
Citrus greening, officially known as huanglongbing, which is Chinese for "yellow dragon disease," is present in many countries around the world but is a recent arrival in the United States. A USDA news release dated Jan. 11 stated that 28 Florida counties were under federal quarantine for citrus greening. The quarantine requires that specific certification requirements be met before fruit is shipped to other citrus-producing states.
The disease is harmless to humans, but it damages trees and ruins the flavor of the fruit or juice. "Once infected, there is no cure for a tree with citrus greening," according to USDA.
The USDA had also placed a quarantine for the Asian citrus psyllid for all of Florida and 32 counties in Texas as well as Hawaii, Guam and Puerto Rico, although so far the citrus greening disease had been found only in Florida, according to the USDA release.
The psyllid, the only known transmitter of citrus greening, was detected at the southern tip of Baja California Mexico, about a year ago, and leaders in the California citrus industry felt it was just a matter of time before it would arrive at and cross the U.S. border.
But "it was quite surprising that it moved from the tip of Baja up to Tijuana in such a short period of time," Joel Nelsen, president of California Citrus Mutual, told The Produce News July 22.
In anticipation of its arrival, "we as an industry, in conjunction with the [CDFA], had a crisis management plan" already in place, Mr. Nelsen said. But implementation of the plan was triggered "sooner than we had planned on."
The problem is "incredibly serious, in the fact that [the pest] is just right across the border from San Diego County and there are prevailing winds" that blow from Tijuana into San Diego County and as far north as Ventura County, said Ted Batkin, president of the California Citrus Research Board. Even without the winds, the psyllid is a strong flyer and is capable of flying two to three miles "when it is out foraging," he said. "We know the psyllid moves very rapidly across long distances, so we know it is not going to stay in Tijuana very long - if it hasn't crossed already. "
Fortunately, the psyllids that have been trapped have been found to be free of citrus greening disease, "but that is just so far," Mr. Batkin said. When Asian citrus psyllid was first detected in Florida in 1999, the disease was not present, but it showed up a few years later and "quickly spread throughout the whole state."
The first phase of the action plan has been extensive trapping north of the border to try to determine if any of the psyllids are already present in California. Meanwhile, in Tijuana, APHIS International Services, which is comprised of Mexican nationals working for USDA, is treating trees south of the border "to lower the [psyllid] populations" in an effort "to slow down any further movement," Mr. Batkin said. "They work in conjunction with SAGARPA ... and SAGARPA is as worried about this as we are. Everybody knows what this is and that it is a death sentence [for the citrus industry]. Nobody is taking this lightly."
A major educational effort to solicit the cooperation of the public is also part of the action plan, according to Mr. Nelsen.
The industry is also working with chemical companies to develop local registrations for chemicals suitable for controlling the pest, he said.
"Notwithstanding the initial shock" upon hearing the news of the psyllid find in Tijuana, "so far ... the news has been positive," said Mr. Nelsen. "No major infestation has been determined. Each psyllid that has been tested has been found negative of HLB," and so far, no psyllids had been found in San Diego County.
"But everybody from Florida will tell you it is only a matter of time," added Mr. Nelsen. "I am hopeful that we can keep the psyllid out of the state for a while longer."
