Fusarium Race 4 Tropical (Foc R4T) has been present in the region since 2019 when it was detected in Colombia, in 2021 it arrived in Peru, and in January of this year Venezuela confirmed the appearance of a pest that attacks bananas and other Musaceae. Ecuador has yet to report the fungus, and to ensure that situation continues, close to $115,000 has been invested in analytical capacity for early detection of the pest.
This was revealed by Patricio Almeida, executive director of the Agency for Phytosanitary and Zoosanitary Regulation and Control (Agrocalidad), during the simulation of action and symposium to prevent the entry of Foc R4T, developed in Ecuador with the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation in Agriculture. (IICA), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).
The banana sector requests that the import of another variety that tolerates Fusarium race 4 be accelerated
The action was carried out as part of the celebration of the International Plant Health Day.
Almeida reminded that bananas are one of the main export items of the country, in which more than 16,000 producers are involved.
“The banana industry provides employment and prosperity to the country, Fusarium is already present in neighboring countries; however, in order to prevent their entry into the country, the Agency is strengthening its action programs. Prevention, surveillance and biosecurity to prevent pests from entering the country. “Almost $6 million and 200 technicians are on the ground gathering information through timely detection,” the official said.
While the manufacturing sector is also investing to prevent the spread of disease. Producers calculate that they invest between 0.08 and 0.13 dollars per box of bananas.
From $0.08 to $0.13 per box of bananas, measures to prevent the entry of Fusarium Race 4 are added to the cost of production.
In Ecuador, approximately 300,000 hectares of bananas are planted, of which 44,000 are in El Oro province. According to data from the Central Bank of Ecuador, 7 million metric tons were exported in 2022 with an FOB value of $3,500 million, representing a 15.5% share of non-oil exports.
According to the Regional Fund for Agricultural Technology (Fontagro), countries that also have plague such as Indonesia, Taiwan and Malaysia had an economic loss of 380 million dollars in 2021 in the banana industry, a problem that has spread to more than 20 countries in the world.
Meanwhile, the simulation conducted in Ecuador was attended by authorities from the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG), the National Institute for Agricultural Research (Iniap), delegates from associations of producers and exporters of bananas and bananas, academia, among others. which make up the Inter-Institutional Working Committee for the Prevention of the Entry of Fusarium Race 4, and consisted of a live broadcast of the activities set out in the plague intervention plan, biosecurity measures, phytosanitary surveillance, sampling and outbreak intervention.
Avian flu: $2.5 million has been invested so far to address the emergency
On the other hand, the symposium ‘Key factors for detection, management and control of Foc R4T’ was attended by national and international experts from FAO, International Regional Organization for Agricultural Health (Oirsa), Colombian Agricultural Research Corporation (Agrosavia), Biodiversity -CIAT among others, which issued recommendations for improving phytosanitary protocols and updating the National Intervention Plan for the prevention, detection and control of this pest.
Source: Eluniverso
Alia is a professional author and journalist, working at 247 news agency. She writes on various topics from economy news to general interest pieces, providing readers with relevant and informative content. With years of experience, she brings a unique perspective and in-depth analysis to her work.
