The Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) reported that Ecuador, Colombia, Costa Rica and Mexico are working together to exchange experiences on good practices in banana management and the prevention of the Fusarium oxysporum cubense race 4 tropical pest (FOC R4T), which puts the continuity of the crop at risk.
During a forum organized by IICA and the Global Alliance against TR4, heThe experts agreed on the importance of focusing the efforts of the sector on prevention and trainingin genetic improvement to mass-produce new banana varieties resistant to the disease, and in the development of control methods to increase plant resistance and stop the transmission of the fungus.
“It is essential to advance in the generation of alliances and spaces for exchange and communication between the various actors in order to collaboratively combat this scourge that affects regional banana production.”, affirmed the IICA representative in Mexico, Diego Montenegro.
As explained by the authorities, the tropical race 4 (T4R) of the Fusarium fungus infects plants through the roots and causes lethal wilt.
This disease can spread to new areas through the movement of infected planting materials or through contaminated soil particles impregnated in shoes, clothing, farm tools or vehicles, and contained in drainage and irrigation water.
(Also: The women who cultivate mangroves to save the Ciénaga de la Virgen in Cartagena).
Acceptance of the role of modern genetic science in food production is important
“The acceptance of the role of modern genetic science in food production is important, the training of small producers in disease control methods so that they improve the productivity of all crops, and the improvement of biosecurity on farms, essential for all crops as climate change drives the spread of disease,” said the executive secretary of the Global Alliance against RT4, Gabriel Rodríguez.
At the event, representatives of the private sector, international organizations and producers from the countries expressed the need to create a shield for banana plantations with a high risk of being contaminated with R4T fusiariosis in that country, given the free human mobility on the borders with Colombia and Peru, as well as the urgency of having financial products aimed at producers to combat it.
(Also: Guardianship in Court puts a magnifying glass on cracks in the coca substitution program in Nariño).
EFE
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