For a second time, Colorado potato beetle larvae have been found in Kent. According to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA), last Friday, a single adult male Colorado beetle was found within the 1 km surveillance zone in Kent. This finding follows beetle larvae which were identified in a field in Kent in mid-July.
If the pest is not eradicated, it can pose a “significant threat to potato crops”, Defra said. No additional colony has been detected and, given the estimated age of the beetle, the department has said it likely “dispersed from the original site”.
Defra and APHA said surveillance for any possible undetected colonies will continue within the 1km surveillance zone.
Source: agriland.co.uk
