Spain: The agricultural sector demands measures against the spread of pests from third countries

Published Sep 17, 2024

Tridge summary

South African pests and diseases, including the South African thrips, false moth, red spider, Banksi spider, HLB, black spot, and citrus canker, are posing a significant threat to Valencian farmers and causing concern due to the lack of effective control measures. The continuous interception of quarantine pests and diseases in citrus fruits imported into the EU has resulted in a 40% increase in production costs for Valencian citrus producers and has destabilized their integrated production and pest control plans. The situation is further exacerbated by the presence of pests like the red spider and Banksi spider in the Valencian Community, and the concern over the potential spread of the HLB vector from Argentina. Agricultural organisations are calling for the exceptional authorisation of phytosanitary products and urging the EU to reconsider agreements like Mercosur that could further impact Spanish farmers.

Disclaimer:The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

South African thrips, black spot, false moth, red spider, Banksi spider, HLB... Pests and diseases from third countries are causing alarm among Valencian farmers. The problem, in addition to their arrival and their incidence, is also the inability to combat them due to the lack of effective materials for their control, as agrarian organisations affirm. Interceptions of citrus fruits imported into the European Union with quarantine pests or diseases continue to occur and last August there were 26 rejections in total, according to data compiled by La Unió Llauradora and Ramadera. From these data, it is worth highlighting the presence of several cases of False moth (Thaumatotibia leucotreta), Black spot (Phyllosticta citricarpa), Citrus canker (Xanthomonas) or Citrus scab (Elsinoe), all of them lethal pests and not present in European citrus growing, which means that some countries continue to not offer the necessary health guarantees in their shipments. Another extra cost This ...

Source: Valencia Fruits