12/2002: International scientists join forces to attack citrus disease

MEDIA RELEASE
16 Dec 2002

Hanoi - Vietnamese citrus producers stand to benefit from new research announced today in Hanoi. A consortium of scientists from Vietnam, Indonesia, Australia and France will collaborate for three years to improve knowledge of and develop strategies to attack the most important disease problem constraining the growth of citrus production in the region, ‘citrus greening disease’ or ‘Huanglongbing’. The announcement was made in Hanoi today at a ceremony held in the offices of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development marking the signing of the new collaborative research project. The document approving the Australia-Vietnam component of the project was signed by Vice Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development, Professor Bui Ba Bong, and Australia’s Ambassador to Vietnam, Mr Joe Thwaites.

“The signing of this important project comes at a critical time for Vietnamese farmers who are increasingly looking for opportunities to diversify their agricultural production,” said Ambassador Thwaites. “The Government of Vietnam has identified the development of citrus production as a top priority in its agricultural diversification plans. This project will develop strategies to address one of the key constraints to the development of this potentially important crop. The Australian Government is glad to provide its support for this timely research.”

The presence of Huanglongbing disease – the Asian form of “citrus greening” – is considered to be the most significant constraint to the establishment of viable citrus industries in tropical and subtropical Asia. Experts suggest that, without appropriate intervention and management strategies, the disease has the potential to destroy citrus orchards within five years of planting.

Huanglongbing’s gradual movement eastward through Asia to Australia and Oceania is a potential threat to biodiversity through the loss of citrus species and citrus relatives that are endemic to the region. Its movement also threatens the established citrus production areas of northern Australia, a key motivation for the involvement of Australian scientists and funding for this research.

As the Government of Vietnam encourages farmers to diversify their activities into new agricultural areas, placing a strong emphasis on the role of citrus production, the development of appropriate management techniques of this disease will be critical. If successfully implemented, the project outputs are likely to have a significant impact on farmers’ livelihoods and rural incomes. While citrus production in Vietnam has been developing in recent years - in 1999 the area of citrus harvested was 44,400 ha and production was 449,300 tonnes – its development has been adversely affected by huanglongbing and short and medium term production is likely to decline rapidly if the onset of the disease accelerates into an epidemic.

The project will be undertaken over three years initially and will involve collaboration between botanists, plant pathologists, entomologists and extension personnel. The aims of the project are to improve knowledge about the causes, transmission and management of huanglongbing in Indonesia and Vietnam, improve technology transfer in both countries through education and training, and develop incursion management strategies for the Australian citrus industry. It is expected that the project will clarify poorly understood or inadequately documented current knowledge of the disease and its vectors, and will also contribute new knowledge through novel research. Germplasm conservation and the development of sustainable control measures for the vector transmitting the disease will also be enhanced through the project.

Concurrent and complimentary research supported by the French agency, CIRAD, will focus mainly on the pathology of the disease and scientists from both projects will collaborate closely in improving knowledge of the disease and the measures required to manage it.

Total funding for the various project activities amounts to AUD$3.2 million disbursed over three years. Funding is being provided by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) (AUD$640,000) and a consortium of other Australian partners (AUD$713,000) including Horticulture Australia Limited (HAL). Funds provided by the French research agency, Centre de Cooperation Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Developpement (CIRAD) through its Départment Productions Fruitières et Horticoles (FLHOR) for its component amount to AUD$1.86 million. The project is the first formal collaboration between ACIAR and CIRAD in Vietnam.

The Vietnamese project leader is Dr. Nguyen Van Tuat, Director of the National Institute for Plant Protection in Hanoi and the Southern Fruit Research Institute (SOFRI) in Tien Giang Province will also collaborate in the project. The Australian Project Leader is Dr Andrew Beattie of the University of Western Sydney and other collaborators in the project include the Entomology Division of Australia’s leading scientific and research agency, CSIRO. The research in Indonesia is being conducted by scientists from Gadjah Mada University.

For more information contact:
Mr Greg Banova
ACIAR Manager
Australian Embassy, Hanoi
Tel: 831-7755 (ext 202)
E-mail: greg.banova@dfat.gov.au

E-mail: greg.banova@dfat.gov.au