Tomato growers in Caxias do Sul have faced increased pest pressure during the 2025/26 summer season due to high temperatures and below-average rainfall, affecting crop yield potential in open-field production.
According to collaborators consulted by Hortifrúti/Cepea, the main pest pressure came from the leaf miner fly, which increased investments in phytosanitary control products. More intensive control measures were also required for the small fruit borer, which caused perforations in fruit and reduced marketable volumes.
In addition, whitefly infestations led to isolated cases of geminivirus in some production areas.
Despite these challenges, average productivity in the region remains between 400 and 450 boxes per thousand plants. However, this remains below the potential of 600 boxes per thousand plants recorded in protected cultivation systems.
Protected cultivation represents around 30 to 35 per cent of the total planted tomato area in the region. These systems achieved more effective pest control during the season, although higher temperatures inside greenhouses increased the incidence of powdery mildew, a fungal disease that causes white spots on tomato leaves.
According to market agents, without the impact of powdery mildew, yields in protected cultivation areas would have exceeded 600 boxes per thousand plants.
Around 80 per cent of the crop has already been harvested. Open-field harvesting is expected to be largely completed during May, while harvesting in protected cultivation areas is expected to continue until June, marking the end of the 2025/26 summer tomato season in the region.
Source: HF Brasil
