A new outbreak of Fusarium Race 4 in Peru has sparked alarm in Ecuador, which claims it has no plague

The warning about a new outbreak of Fusarium Race 4 in Peru is causing alarm in Ecuador, where the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG), through the Agency for Phytosanitary and Zoosanitary Regulation and Control (Agrocalidad), has confirmed that the pest is not present in the country.

The Fusarium fungus infects plants through the roots and causes a deadly wilt. This disease can spread to new areas through the movement of infected planting material or contaminated soil particles soaked in shoes, clothing, farm tools and vehicles and found in drainage and irrigation water.

Ecuadorian authorities stated that the warning was exposed by the Peruvian media and that it could happen in the sector of Sullana, in the department of Piura, the same area where the first outbreak of the fungus was recorded in 2021. Plague was also discovered in 2019 in Colombia and in January of this year in Venezuela.

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Peru’s National Institute for Agrarian Innovation (INIA) has influenced organic banana plantations. This new hotspot, as they warn, is only 290 kilometers from the city of Huaquillas, in the province of El Oro, in Ecuador.

Responding to the alarm, Agrocalidad reminded that since 2014, the Agency has a National Intervention Plan for the prevention, detection and control of Fusarium Race 4, which contains the processes of supervision, control, training and strengthening of analytical capacities.

They also stated that from January to July 2023, 29,581 specific monitoring for Foc R4T was performed and 141 samples were collected, with negative results. 53,019 hectares are monitored with 13 drones that monitor almost 10,000 hectares of Musaceae plantations in identified risk areas. Overflights reach 8 times the area with greater precision.

Other actions were:

The agency also reminds that it has a network of laboratories consisting of Agrocalidad – INIAP – CIBE, which has the capacity to process 1,000 samples per month, a service that is active 24/7 and which strengthens the analytical capacity.

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“The aforementioned actions carried out by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, through Agrocalidad, enabled the protection of Ecuadorian bananas, the first national export item; Therefore, we call on the private sector of musáceas (producers, traders and exporters) to take care of their production and adhere to the established measures, timely informing the Agency about possible suspicions of Foc R4T at 1800 247 600”, said MAG.

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