ISSUE 53: DECEMBER 2019
 
   
   
   
             
  UPCOMING TFNET ACTIVITIES    

OTHER TROPICAL FRUIT EVENTS

  
       
           
 

Workshop on Banana Fusarium Wilt 
Venue: Guangzhou, China
Date: April 2020

Workshop on Potential Minor Tropical Fruits
Venue: Malaysia
Date: June/July 2020

2020 International Symposium on Tropical Fruits
Venue: TBA
Date: September/October 2020

X International Pineapple Symposium
Venue: Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
Date: 22-26 April 2020

III Asian Horticultural Congress - AHC2020
Venue: BITEC, Bangkok, Thailand
Date: 7-9 May 2020

  
     
   
     
 

 
             
 
THE 2019 TFNET NEWS ROUND UP
 
   
           
       
   
  TFNet organizes the 2019 international symposium on tropical fruits in Vietnam TFNet conducts 13th BOT session in Vietnam  
           
  The 2019 International Symposium on Tropical Fruits (ISTF 2019) was held at the Liberty Central Saigon Riverside Hotel, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam on 24-26 September 2019. The International Tropical Fruits Network (TFNet) held its 13th Board of Trustees Meeting in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam on 23 September, a day before the 2019 International Symposium on Tropical Fruits.  
           
       
   
 

TFNet-led seminar on MD2 pineapple attracts 282 participants

TFNet releases MD2 seminar report

  
           
  A total of 282 participants attended the seminar on Current Development and Challenges in Improving Production, Productivity, and Market Demand for the MD2 Pineapple Variety on 11 July 2019 at the Tan Sri Yusof Hashim Hall, MARDI, Serdang, Malaysia. The report on the TFNet-led seminar on Current Development and Challenges in Improving Production, Productivity, and Market Demand for the MD2 Pineapple Variety is now available in Bahasa Malaysia.  
           
       
           
 

TROPED 2018 proceedings has been released

TFNet signs memorandum of understanding with MARDI

 
           
  The highly-anticipated proceedings of the 2018 International Conference on Tropical Fruit Pests and Diseases has been released. The International Tropical Fruits Network (TFNet) and the Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on October 31, 2019.  
             
 
FEATURE ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS
 
   
           
       
           
 

Large scale dragonfruit production in China’s Guangxi Province

 Dragonfruit: The next potential major tropical fruit?  
           
  China is fast becoming a leading producer of dragonfruit, expanding from 3,400 ha in 2011 to 50,000 ha in 2019. They are set to outpace Vietnam, the world's leading dragonfruit producer that has 55,000 ha. Dragonfruit or pitaya (Hylocereus sp. and Selenicereus sp.) is gaining popularity with expanding global markets and increase in production areas as observed in Vietnam, China, India, and some countries in Latin America.  
           
 
2019 TROPICAL FRUITS NEWS - IN REVIEW
 
   
               
  BANANA          
   
  COLOMBIA: Dreaded fungus confirmed to hit banana plantations
STUDY: Black Sigatoka boosted by climate change
  
   
  The Colombian Agricultural Institute (ICA) in Bogotá confirmed that four plantations in northern Colombia have been quarantined because of suspected infection with Fusarium wilt tropical race 4 (TR4), a fungus that kills plants by clogging their vascular system. Climate change has raised the risk of a fungal disease that ravages banana crops, new research shows.  
   
  INDIA: Smartphone app uses AI to detect diseased bananas JAPAN: Cold-resistant banana farm promotes disabled’s social integration  
   
  A research project has brought together artificial intelligence, satellites, cloud computing and the internet of things (IoT) to help farmers detect diseased bananas using a smartphone app. In a farm employing a sophisticated technique to develop cold-resistant bananas in Okayama Prefecture, disabled people play a major role in the routine work of watering, fertilizing and removing yellowing leaves from the plants.  
   
   
  MANGO  
   
  INDIA: Compound in mango leaves might solve USD 2.5 trillion shipping problem AUSTRALIA: ‘World’s first’ automatic mango harvester developed  
   
  A team of Indian scientists has developed a compound from the leaf of the mango tree that can protect ships from rusting, which is far more efficient than synthetic paints while also being non-toxic and environment-friendly. Central Queensland University has built the world’s first mango auto-harvester, with the first prototype achieving 75% efficiency in automatically identifying and picking fruit.  
   
  AUSTRALIA: Mango industry discovers highly infectious bacteria as cause of ugly veins of resin canal discoloration INDIA: Mango exporters frustrated with US trade dispute  
   

 
  Scientists have worked out what causes ugly veins to appear in mangoes — a breakthrough that could save the industry millions of dollars each year. Indian farmers grow about half the world’s mangoes, but in the village of Bedchit, in Gujarat state, the season is ending on a sour note for exporters after a recent bust-up over trade with the US threatens plans to boost global sales.  
   
   
  PINEAPPLE  
               
  RESEARCH: Pineapple genome offers insights into plant domestication process COSTA RICA: The area devoted to pineapple increased by 15.7% in one year  
   
  Scientists at the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology at the University of Illinois sequenced the genome of the red pineapple and compared it to the genomes of several other cultivars. An update of satellite maps linked to NASA reveal that 66,266 hectares of pineapple were planted in 2017, according to the Monitoring Productive Landscape Use Changes (MOCUPP) of Costa Rica.  
   
  MEXICO: Veracruz loses 5,000 hectares of pineapples due to drought CHINA: Asian giant is the new market for Malaysia’s pineapple  
   
  The drought in the Mexican state of Veracruz, the leading pineapple producer in the country, has caused the loss of 5,000 hectares of production area and a decrease in fruit size. China has become Malaysia’s new international market for the premium pineapple variety, MD2, following durian’s success in penetrating the country last May.  
               
   
  AVOCADO  
   
  USA: Avocado imports jump from all LatAm origins through Q3 MEXICO: Avocado growers increasingly face cartel violence  
   
  Over the nine-month period, total imports from USA rose by 20% year-on-year from USD 1.7 billion to USD 2 billion. The growth came amid the lowest California avocado crop in a decade, which created a supply gap for overseas producers. In Mexico, the meteoric rise of the avocado industry has attracted unwanted attention and an increase in violence toward growers and their workers.  
   
  USA: Tariff threats push avocado prices to highest level since 2017 KENYA: Green energy makes farmer’s avocados greener  
   
  Mexico grows most avocados eaten in the United States, so a price hike could affect millions of Americans’ wallets. Micah Cheserem, the former chairman of the Commission on Revenue Allocation, uses solar power to pump water from reservoirs to farms.  
   
   
  PAPAYA  
   
  INDIA: Breakthrough research to combat the dreaded papaya ring spot virus EU: Papaya market is growing in Europe  
   
  An independent agriculture scientist has developed a plant-based eco-friendly formulation, which provides sustained protection against papaya ring spot virus for two years. In Europe, papaya consumption isn’t yet as common as in tropical countries, but it is growing gradually.  
   
  AUSTRALIA: New Ruby Red papaya invites young’uns to “taste the supergoodness” USA: FDA calls on papaya industry to re-examine food safety practices  
   
  Well-known banana grower, the MacKay family, has released Australia’s newest red papaya brand – Ruby Rise Red Papaya. The Food and Drug Administration, citing eight foodborne illness outbreaks linked to papayas since 2011, has alerted all handlers that repeated outbreaks are unacceptable and the industry must take action to step up food safety efforts.  
   
   
  OTHER FRUITS  
   
  INDIA: Guava pest genome decoded by Indian Council of Agricultural Research STUDY: Greening devastates the citrus industry: New research offers a solution  
   
  For the first time, researchers from ICAR Research Complex have mapped the mitochondrial genome of guava trunk borer, a beetle that thrives on the guava and lychee trees in the northeastern region of India. Researchers from the Citrus Research and Education Center of the University of Florida developed a strategy for early diagnosis of HLB.  
   
  AUSTRALIA: Flies could be ‘the new bees’ as researchers try to diversify pollinators AUSTRALIA: Feijoa is the superfruit you’ve probably never heard of  
   
  University of Western Sydney researcher Jonathan Finch has been placing fish carcasses across a large commercial mango orchard near Katherine in the Northern Territory in the hope of studying fly pollination behavior. Although Feijoa is native to Brazil, it is widely cultivated in New Zealand and is exported to Australia and other countries.  
   
  USA: Lawmakers urge EPA to rethink use of antibiotics on citrus trees INDIA: Farmers gear up to promote ‘Naga tree tomato’  
   
  US lawmakers are urging the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to rethink its position on the use of two medically important antibiotics to treat a disease affecting citrus production. The North Eastern Regional Agricultural Marketing Corporation Limited (NERAMAC) organized a workshop on ‘Post GI Activities for Naga Tree Tomato and Registration for Authorized Users’.  
   
  CHINA: How the love of durian is reshaping the Thai countryside AUSTRALIA: Lychee ‘super varieties’ to bring new flavours of popular summer fruit  
   
  China’s growing middle class has developed a taste for exotic fruits like durian: between 2009 and 2017, fresh durian imports grew fourfold, from USD 124 million to USD 552 million. Six varieties of “standout” Taiwanese lychee trees have been planted on a Yeppoon farm after a long journey from Taiwan, a year in quarantine in Melbourne, a flight to Brisbane, and a road trip to Yeppoon.  
   
  ETHIOPIA: Enset, a potential life saver for the warming world COLOMBIA: Citrus crops ravaged by HLB  
   
  Described as “a banana on steroids”, enset may be the superfood you’ve never heard of, let alone tasted, but scientists say it could be a lifesaver for a warming world. Municipal leaders of Santo Tomás and Palmar de Varela, Colombia, have urged for an agricultural calamity be declared in the Atlantic due to the devastating and widespread effects of citrus greening.  
   
  PERU: The market for rambutan has potential for growth in the EU CHINA: Fruit imports may exceed $10 billion in 2019  
   
  Rambutan is starting to gain prominence in Europe’s fruit markets and it has had a great reception among Asian consumers who are on living the continent, as well as in specialty stores. China is increasing its imports of fruits, berries, and nuts and may for the first time exceed the mark of USD 10 billion this year.