October 2016 (Page 3)

by  ‘Yemi Oluwadare, Today     The International Institute of Agriculture (IITA) has intensified efforts aimed at preventing the further spread of Banana Bunchy Top Disease (BBTD), that is debilitating banana production in sub-Saharan Africa.   The disease, first discovered in Nigeria, in Odologun community, in Yewa South council areaContinue Reading

by Lisa Radinovsky, Olive Oil Times     Panayotis Karantonis, an International Olive Council advisory committee member and director of the Hellenic Association of Industries & Packers of Olive Oil (ESVITE), tells Olive Oil Times that recent estimates for the upcoming olive harvest in Greece call for lower yields than lastContinue Reading

by Pam Eubanks, Your Observer   On 6 acres at Mixon Fruit Farms in Bradenton, a bulldozer clanks and clangs as it knocks over rows of citrus trees.   Three areas within the 50-acre grove, in particular, have become virtually unproductive because of a disease known as citrus greening.   GroveContinue Reading

  A new strategy for combating the vector of the bacterium that causes huanglongbing, also known as greening, considered the most destructive citrus disease in the world and present in 17% of orange trees in São Paulo State, Brazil, can be developed from the discovery that three citrus plants produceContinue Reading

by Rudolf Mulderij, Fresh Plaza     The pomegranate market seems to be in good shape. The demand for the fruit is on the rise. Israel benefited from an empty European market, Spanish growers are investing in expanding their acreage and the Italian season recorded an earlier start. The Turkish domesticContinue Reading

by Pamela Jay F. Orias, Sun Star   TOTAL production of major crops in the second quarter this year dropped by 17 percent compared to the same period last year, a report from National Economic Development Authority (Neda) Northern Mindanao noted.   Industrial crops registered the major drop which recorded anContinue Reading

  Taiwan’s agricultural sector suffered estimated losses of 1.03 billion new Taiwanese dollars (about 31.9 million U.S. dollars) following Typhoon Megi swept across the island on Tuesday and early Wednesday, the island’s agricultural department said Wednesday.   About 20 percent of the losses were in Yunlin County in the centralContinue Reading

  The Citrus Management Committee (CGC) met on Tuesday to assess the official citrus production prospects recently presented by the Regions of Valencia, Andalusia and Murcia (Catalonia, the fourth most important region in terms of production, has stopped doing this due to lack of budget) and analyse their impact onContinue Reading

by Antonio L. Colina IV, Manila Bulletin   The Southern Mindanao Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development Consortium (Smaardec) will embark on a large-scale study in a bid to combat the dreaded Fusarium wilt, or the Panama Disease, in bananas.   In an exclusive interview, Smaardec Deputy Director ReyniloContinue Reading

  Harvest forecasts for mangoes were much higher than what has finally been obtained, although about 20,000 tonnes will be reached, which according to José Linares, president of the Spanish Association of Tropical Crops, makes it the second largest harvest ever to be achieved in Spain.   The fruit’s demandContinue Reading

by Gabrielle Easter, Fruitnet     Ecuador will begin its first airfreight of fresh mangoes to China this month since gaining access earlier this year.   President of the Mango Ecuador Foundation, Sergio Cedeño, said the first airfreight shipments would begin this week, with seafreight shipments to be trialled inContinue Reading