About 15,000 hectares of orange plantations are in danger because of the advance of the HLB (Huanglongbing) disease in the country, according to a statement by Nelson Fariña, technician at the National Quality and Plant and Seed Health (Senave), at a field visit in Buena Vista (Caazapá).
Meanwhile, Tania Santibanez, Plant Protection Officer of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), said that, at country level, there were 20,000 acres of citrus still in danger. She said they had been working on the preventive and reactive applications of biological control and chemicals to control the spread of the disease, which, in Yucatán (Mexico), led to the elimination of more than 160,000 acres of citrus.
Fariña considered the plague could advance if the corresponding measures were not taken. She added that the producers who were aware of this plight already knew that they had to uproot the infected plants; however, the lack of access to this relevant information by the families that have citrus plants in their gardens is threatening the extensive production of citrus, she explained.
According to the technicians and the producers, the disease has caused no commercial damage so far; however, many people are starting to be concerned about the citrus fruits due to the diffusion of information.
Source: ultimahora.com