 |
|||||||
| ISSUE 54: JANUARY 2020 |  |
 |
 |
 |
 |
||
 |
||
 |
||
| NEW YEAR MESSAGE FROM TFNET SECRETARIAT | ||
| We would like to wish our members, partners, stakeholders, and supporters a happy new year! This year, the International Tropical Fruits Network turns 20! Since its establishment, TFNet prides itself as the sole global network on tropical fruits with efforts dedicated towards enhancing human resource development, functioning as a repository that facilitates exchange of information on production, processing, marketing, consumption of tropical fruits, and sharing technical expertise in the tropical fruit sector. |
|
|||||||
 |
 |
||||||
| FEATURE: Agriculture 4.0…Are we ready for tropical fruits? |  |
||||||
| Agriculture 4.0 has been bandied around by policy makers, researchers, and technology prospectors to utilize the ubiquity of communication networks and digital devices to improve productivity and marketability of produce. With tropical fruit producers being mainly smallholders, is the industry ready of Agriculture 4.0? | |||||||
| UPCOMING TFNET ACTIVITIES | OTHER TROPICAL FRUIT EVENTS |
||||||
Workshop on Banana Fusarium Wilt National Fruit Symposium (Malaysia) 2020 International Symposium on Tropical Fruits & 14th TFNet Board of Trustees Meeting |
X International Pineapple Symposium III Asian Horticultural Congress - AHC2020 XIII International Mango Symposium |
||||||
TROPICAL FRUIT NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD |
|||||||
 |
CHINA: GM papaya and soybean from USA approved for import |  |
AUSTRALIA: Farmer develops country’s first ever seedless lychees | ||||
| China approved two new genetically modified (GM) crops for import that could boost agricultural purchases from the United States, while renewing permits for 10 others, the Chinese agriculture ministry said. | Tibby Dixon, a farmer from Sarina Beach in Far North Queesland, has successfully developed Australia's first ever seedless lychee. | ||||||
 |
MALAYSIA: Durian skin biocomposite for take-out containers and 3-D printing |  |
PHILIPPINES: Taal damage to agriculture hits USD63 million | ||||
Researchers at the International Islamic University Malaysia have developed biodegradable food packaging container featuring the skin of the durian fruit that can also be used as 3-D printing filament. |
The amount of damage and losses to agriculture caused by Taal Volcano continuing activity has ballooned to P3.17 billion (USD63 million), the Department of Agriculture (DA) reported. | ||||||
 |
AUSTRALIA: Pineapple glut due to drought conditions prompts growers to urge more consumption |  |
MALAYSIA: Musang King to dominate durian output by 2022 | ||||
| Australians are being encouraged to eat more pineapple for the remainder of the summer to help growers deal with a glut in the market. | Musang King cultivation is expected to grow by 50% in the next two years from 36% presently to meet high demand from countries like China and increase the earnings of durian farmers. | ||||||
 |
VIETNAM: Export of fruit and vegetables slightly fall in 2019 |  |
CHINA: Avocados hit sweet spot while sucking Chile dry | ||||
| Vietnam’s exports of fruit and vegetables exceeded USD3.7 billion in 2019, down by 1.9% compared to 2018, mainly due to the sharp decline in export quantity and revenue regarding the Chinese market | Chinese consumers have embraced the craze for avocado only in recent years, but that is making life ever more difficult in one of its source countries. | ||||||
 |
INDIA: Horticulture output to be 313 million tonnes in 2019-20 |  |
PHILIPPINES: Zambales mango production drops sharply due to bad weather | ||||
| Total horticulture production in 2019-20 is expected to be 313.35 million tonnes, about 0.84% higher than 2018-19, according to first advance estimates. | Bad weather conditions are negatively impacting the production of mangoes and causing a lot of anxiety as the summer season draws near, specially because the fruit is considered a signature product of the province. | ||||||
 |
CHINA: First shipment of Taiwanese guavas headed for United States |  |
SYRIA: Tropical cave a unique agricultural experiment | ||||
| The first shipment of Taiwanese guavas to the United States set out from Nanxi District in Tainan on Friday, following the signing of an export agreement by the two countries in October. | A passion for adventure led a journalist-cum-photographer to grow tropical fruits in Syria next to a natural pool and a cave, despite the colder climate in the Mediterranean. | ||||||
 |
VIETNAM: Japan’s decision opens new doors for Vietnamese “thieu” lychee |  |
INDONESIA: Chinese imports restrictions being reviewed over coronavirus concerns | ||||
Japan’s recent decision of importing Vietnamese “thieu” lychee is expected to open new doors for this fruit, according to Vietnamese Trade Counsellor in Japan Ta Duc Minh. |
The Indonesian Trade Ministry is coordinating with the Health Ministry on whether to impose import restrictions on goods from China, Indonesia’s largest trading partner, to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. |
||||||
 |
CAMBODIA: Mangoes all set for South Korea |  |
THAILAND: Central fruit markets to be linked with China to boost exports | ||||
| Leading South Korean importer and exporter, Hyundai Agro, has announced the first commercial shipment of Cambodian grown mangoes will be sent from the South East Asian country this week. | The Department of Internal Trade (DIT) plans to link Thailand’s central fruit markets with those of China to expand the trading channel for Thai fruits, Whichai Phochanakij, the department’s director-general, said recently. | ||||||
 |
SAINT LUCIA: Banana to be branded as “premium” agricultural product |  |
SOUTH KOREA: Anmyeon island farm pioneers tropical fruit horticulture | ||||
| Saint Lucia will be branding its bananas as a premium agricultural product as part of strategic efforts as it related to the island’s banana industry. | Bananas and papaya are being cultivated on a farm on Anmyeon Island in Taean County, South Chungcheong Province. | ||||||
 |
THAILAND: Department of Agriculture promotes fruit export standards |  |
PAKISTAN: Guava production in Larkana tumbles to all-time low | ||||
| The Department of Agriculture is convincing fruit exporters to meet standards for their produce and packaging processes and about 500 operators have agreed to cooperate. | Sindh Chamber of Agriculture (SCA) Larkana president Sirajul Oliya confirmed that the reduction in guava production this season was linked to climate change paired with locust and mealybug attacks on the crop in the district. | ||||||
 |
USA: Holy jabong! Hawaiian family grows record breaking pomelo |  |
TUNISIA: Profits shrivel for date farmers as the heat rises | ||||
| A Moanalua family is claiming their pomelo tree produced a world record-setting fruit, weighing 12 pounds. | Like thousands of farmers across the region, the effects of the climate crisis and water scarcity are threatening the livelihoods of date farmers. | ||||||
LATEST TROPICAL FRUIT RESEARCH |
|||||||
 |
A molecularly engineered antiviral banana lectin inhibits fusion and is efficacious against influenza virus infection in vivo |  |
Developing Plantain for Resistance to Banana Aphids by RNA Interference | ||||
| E.M. Covés-Datson, et. al. (13 Jan 2020) Proceedings: National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America DOI |
T. Jekayinoluwa, et. al. (16 Jan 2020) Proceedings: International Tropical Agriculture Conference (TROPAG 2019) DOI |
||||||
 |
Climate Change and Mango Production |  |
Diagnosis and management of nutrient constraints in mango | ||||
| S. Halder & Md.A. Hasan (28 Jan 2020) Journal: Chemical Science Review and Letters DOI |
R.A.Ram, M.A.Rahim, & M.S.Alamc (24 Jan 2020) Book: Fruit Crops DOI |
||||||
 |
Reduction of peduncle detachment surface discoloration in Ananas comosus L. By pre-harvest spraying with potassium phosphite |  |
Changes of Quality of Minimally-Processed Pineapple (Ananas comosus, var. ‘Queen Victoria’) during Cold Storage: Fungi in the Leading Role | ||||
| C.H. Tang, et. al (17 Jan 2020) Journal: Scientia Horticulturae DOI |
C. Leneveu-Jenvrin, et.al (28 Jan 2020) Journal: Microorganisms DOI |
||||||
 |
Pulp, Leaf, Peel and Seed of Avocado Fruit: A Review of Bioactive Compounds and Healthy Benefits |  |
In vitro assessment of chitosan and essential oils for the control of two pathogen species of Colletotrichum isolated from avocado (Persea americana Mill) | ||||
| P. Jimenez, et. al (31 Jan 2020) Journal: Food Reviews International DOI |
M.E. Chávez-Magdaleno, et.al. Journal: Revista Especializada en Ciencias Químico-Biológicas DOI: 10.22201/fesz.23958723e.2019.0.189 |
||||||
 |
Evaluation of antimicrobial activity of rambutan (Nephelium lappaceum L.) peel extracts |  |
Effect of foliar application of micro nutrients on physicalquality parameters of guava (Psidium guajava l.) Cv. lalit | ||||
| N.N.M. Phuong, et. al. (27 January 2020) Journal: International Journal of Food Microbiology DOI |
K.A. Sachin, et. al. (28 Jan 2020) Journal: Annals of Horticulture DOI |
||||||