The latest outbreak of Fusarium race 4 in the region, in Peru last August, besides worrying the Ecuadorian banana sector due to the proximity of the fungus, which was detected only 290 kilometers from the border town of Huaquillas (province of El Oro), also raises expectations for the results of a resistant or tolerant variety that is already being evaluated in Ecuador.

The Agency for Phyto and Zoosanitary Regulation and Control (Agrocalidad) recalled that the country is evaluating the Formosana variety, originally developed in Taiwan and widely distributed in countries affected by Fusarium race 4. However, tests of this material have not yet been carried out. results, because their realization is predicted for the end of 2025, the Agency points out.

Ecuador is strengthening its protocols and projects against Fusarium Race 4, in which it invests 9 million dollars a year

In 2022, 4,620 plants of this variety were imported, which are estimated in the provinces of Los Ríos and Santa Elena. In addition, the National Institute for Agricultural Research (Iniap) is looking for new banana varieties that show resistance or tolerance to the disease with the support of international cooperation and the Fund for Research on Agrobiodiversity, Seeds and Sustainable Agriculture (Fiasa).

The agency emphasized that information on the evaluation of this variety is confidential due to problems related to the service contract concluded between the private company and Iniap; However, he revealed that the trial conducted in Los Ríos has been ongoing for a year and the trial in Santa Elena is nine months old.

In 2022, plants of the Formosana variety arrived in Ecuador. Photo: taken from @PedroAlavaEc

Regarding this progress with Formosan, José Antonio Hidalgo, executive director of the Association of Ecuadorian Banana Exporters (AEBE), revealed that the variety is in the process of being registered for cultivation, but clarified that these crops will be controlled. “The ministry has given a temporary permit with certain limits on the number of plants, about a million plants on 350 hectares with a selection process for elite plants to start temporary and controlled commercial distribution,” explained Hidalgo.

In this regard, Patricio Almeida, CEO of Agrocalidad, confirmed that a stage of controlled commercial distribution has been established within the management protocol for these varieties, but clarified that Agrocalidad is not part of that part of the process, which is exclusive to Iniap and MAG. “The phytosanitary protocol was respected, those plants that entered with quarantine monitoring that was respected, but there is a commercial phase managed by Iniap and the Ministry of Agriculture, but yes, the protocol provides that when the first phase of quarantine is already carried out for commercial tests,” he said.

Fusarium Race 4 resistant banana cultivar being evaluated in Australia emerges as new option for Ecuador’s banana sector

Another variety that is close to being imported to Ecuador is gal from Israel, the head of AEBE reminded. “The last entry, a few weeks ago, of an application for an import permit to carry out tests on a number of plants has been reviewed and so far it has been fully complied with and we hope that the Seed Commission will be convened soon so that you give them permission, this must be urgent, ” He said.

Is organic banana more prone to Fusarium race 4 infection?

The recent outbreak in the southern neighbor also raises uncertainty about the type of crop in which it was last detected, organic bananas.

The presence of the pest was first detected in 2019 in the sector of Guajira, in Colombia, then in 2021 in the department of Piura, in Peru, and recently this year in several states of Venezuela, however, this is the first time that the pest affects organic plantations of musaceae.

Unlike traditional crops, this type of crop requires more care and a higher cost of production due to the ban on the use of herbicides and the use of organic fertilizer, which is obtained from different organic matter of the crop; microorganisms, minerals, banana rachis, coffee pulp, among others.

According to Agrocalidado figures, there are 23,904 hectares of certified organic bananas in Ecuador, which represents 14% of the banana area: 19,059 are organic and 4,845 are in transition. And 1,622 certified banana production units are registered in the provinces of El Oro, Guayas, Santa Elena, Los Ríos, Manabí, Esmeraldas, Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas, Azuay, Cotopaxi, Cañar and Pichincha.

New outbreak of Fusarium race 4 in Peru revives fight between producers and exporters in Ecuador, now due to lack of funds for biosecurity measures

In addition, Ecuador is ranked first among ten countries for the third year in a row great players exporters of organic products to the European Union, with a 12.7% share of organic products on the European market and an export volume of 345,522 tons in 2022. Organic bananas are the main product exported to the European Union (European Commission, Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development, 2023).

The agency excluded that these types of crops are more prone to infection by the pest, because the phytosanitary exclusion measures established to prevent the introduction of the fungus are applied to twelve entry points into the country, three barrier and control blocks located in the interior of the country in the provinces of El Oro and Loja, and the implementation and the maintenance of biosecurity measures is monitored in places of production of musaceae (including bananas), whether organic or conventional.

Almost 4% of the bananas that Ecuador exports to the world are organic, which are gradually gaining ground in Europe, Asia and the United States

“Fusarium race 4 is a fungus that lives in the soil and causes banana wilt. The pathogen penetrates the vascular tissue of plants through the roots, causing them to change color and wither, due to disruption of the water and nutrient translocation system. The symptoms do not differ between organic and conventional banana plants,” says the Agency.

What to use in organic plantations to control pests?

The use of quaternary ammonium is common in biosecurity protocols against Fusarium race 4 because of its demonstrated efficacy in chlamydospores in controlling this pest. However, in organic plantations its use is limited due to the risk of loss of organic integrity; but there are certain guidelines for its use.