Country: Canada

Title: New Report of Potato Wart (Synchytrium endobioticum) in Prince Edward Island, Canada (2014)

Contact:
<p>Contact: Alain Boucher, National Manager - Potato Section, Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), Moncton, New Brunswick; phone: 506-851-2511; e-mail: Alain.Boucher@inspection.gc.ca</p>

Report:

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has recently confirmed the presence of potato wart in a single field, 14.1 hectares, on a farm in Prince Edward Island (PEI).

Potato wart is a quarantine pest that is regulated in Canada because it reduces yield and can make potatoes unmarketable. The Agency has placed the field under quarantine and is carrying out additional control measures as part of Canada's potato wart long-term management plan. These measures include controlling the movement of equipment, plant material and soil as well as cleaning and disinfecting machinery to prevent spread of the pest. To mitigate the spread of this pest, the potatoes produced in the field will be destroyed.

The CFIA, the PEI government and PEI industry associations are working together to control this pest and inform various stakeholders of the situation.

The potato wart long-term management plan was established after the initial finding in PEI in 2000 and has been used to respond to previous detections of the pest. It includes regulatory requirements to effectively manage detections and prevent trade disruptions in the event of future detections.

Under IPPC standards, potato wart is considered to be present, only in some areas of Canada, and is under official control.

For more information on potato wart please visit the CFIA website (www.inspection.gc.ca).

 

Posted Date: Sept. 4, 2014, 9 a.m.