During the inauguration of the First International Congress of Citrus in the State of Oaxaca, HLB Citrus and Climate Change, the Secretariat of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food (SAGARPA) stated that State Plant Health Committee of Oaxaca (CESVO) provides coverage of 22,613 hectares of citrus through the Plant Campaign it operates.
Manuel García Corpus, the delegate of Sagarpa in Oaxaca, said on behalf of the Government that the state had 25,966 hectares cultivated with citrus (Persian limes, Mexican limes, oranges, and grapefruit), which yielded 252,000 tons worth $581 million pesos.
The federal official said that President Enrique Peña Nieto and Jose Calzada, the head of Sagarpa had instructed prioritizing the phytosanitary issue so that producers could access international markets and to improve the quality of their lives.
"Jose Calzada has instructed us to perform a series of tasks to strengthen the development of the field and to prove that it is a good life option, a good business, and that it is highly productive and profitable. The agrifood products produced in Oaxaca are well accepted in the market because of their good quality."
Manuel Garcia Corpus said the CESVO was operating 4,591,000 pesos for the campaign against the Huanglongbing (HLB), which helps protecting 22,613 hectares of citrus against this disease, its vector, the Asian citrus psyllid, and controlling outbreaks.
According to the CESVO, the HLB disease, which is caused by the Candidatus Liberibacter spp. bacterium, "is considered the most devastating disease for citrus worldwide, because there is no known cure for the infected trees. In Mexico, the HLB has been detected in 15 citrus states: Baja California Sur, Campeche, Colima, Chiapas, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Michoacan, Nayarit, Puebla, Quintana Roo, Sinaloa, Tabasco, Yucatan, Zacatecas, and Oaxaca."
The actions carried out in 2015 established that, in addition to the strategic phytosanitary surveillance for detection and timely treatment of outbreaks of HLB, the control areas (arcs) of the Asian citrus psyllid (the vector of the HLB) will also be monitored.
The First International Congress of Citrus in the State of Oaxaca: HLB Citrus and Climate Change, was opened by the head of the Ministry of Agricultural Development, Fisheries and Aquaculture (Sedapa), Jorge Carrasco Altamirano, who highlighted the progress that the agrifood sector, as well as honey, mezcal, and papaya production, have had in the state of Oaxaca.
Speakers from Brazil, Cuba, Uruguay, and Mexico attended the Congress and spoke about different subjects, such as: the current situation and perspectives of the Huanglogbing disease (Yellow Dragon) in Mexico ; experience in the managing the HLB in Brazil; epidemiology of the Asian citrus psyllid in terms of climate change in Mexico, and the impact of climate change on citrus.
Source: imparcialoaxaca.mx