Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Charles H. Bronson, Commissioner Citrus Health Response Program Update Richard Gaskalla, Director Division of Plant Industry

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry Citrus Canker Program History Citrus Canker Program History  1995 found again near Miami Int’l Airport  trees w/in 125’ of infected trees removed – canker still spreading  1999 epidemiological study concluded that trees w/in 1900’ need to be removed for eradication to be 97% successful (w/normal weather patterns)  2000, 1900’ law enacted

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry Citrus Canker Program History (cont’d)  Nov 2000 – Feb 2004 court injunctions hindered program: 200,000 additional trees infected  Feb 2004, FL Supreme Court ruled in favor of program and full scale eradication efforts resume  Hurricanes of 2004/2005 spread canker to over 80,000 acres of commercial citrus

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry Citrus Canker Program History (cont’d)  Nov/Dec 2005, USDA scientists estimate canker could impact up to 220,000 acres of commercial citrus due to impact of Hurricane Wilma  January 2006, USDA deems eradication unfeasible and withdraws funding for eradication – continue to support other program activities

Citrus Canker Exposure Map  Commercial finds after 1/01/06 Commercial finds after 1/01/06  Commercial finds prior to 1/01/06 Commercial finds prior to 1/01/06  Commercial citrus groves Commercial citrus groves Once eradication program stopped, canker spread rapidly in commercial groves

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry  Bacterial disease spread by Asian citrus psyllid (identified in Florida 1998)  Greening found August 2005 during cooperative survey  Kills infected trees  Scientists agree eradication not feasible due to latency of disease  Long-term management logical approach  30 counties positive Huanglongbing/Greening Another Hit to the Citrus Industry Leaf mottle Misshapen fruit Asian citrus psyllid

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry Citrus Health Response Program Developed in 2006 w/FDACS, USDA and industry to help mitigate impact of citrus diseases

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry CHRP Goals  Determine best strategies for ensuring a healthy citrus industry into the future  Work cooperatively with gov’t agencies, research institutions, and industry to build effective management program  Develop secure citrus germplasm and citrus nursery program  Work toward effective disease/disease-vector management program for groves  Provide defendable phytosanitary protocol that allows fresh fruit movement to all markets

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry  Trips to Brazil, Argentina, South Africa, China, and Vietnam were taken to determine what others are doing to control citrus diseases –Frequent surveys necessary to determine disease/insect prevalence –Disease/vector control measures must be implemented  UF/IFAS disease/vector control management strategies developed and made available CHRP In Action

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry  Group formed to discuss level of regulatory oversight necessary at production level –Still uncertain about what management practices will work best –One disease management strategy “does not fit all” –Need for ongoing exchange of information and educational outreach  Program elements are proposed to address these issues CHRP In Action

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry CHRP in Action Citrus Nursery Certification Program  Location: sites must be a minimum of one mile from commercial groves  Structure: approved structure must have enclosed sides and tops and positive process double-door entries  Sanitation: all plant material and soil must be removed from equipment before entering/exiting nursery  Decontamination: everyone who enters nursery must decontaminate with approved products

CHRP In Action  Survey Activities Multiple Pest SurveyMultiple Pest Survey Export SurveysExport Surveys Nursery Environs SurveyNursery Environs Survey  Regulatory Activities Compliance agreements (CA) requiredCompliance agreements (CA) required Grower/caretaker CA requires attachment of business planGrower/caretaker CA requires attachment of business plan Outlines decontamination, survey and disease managementOutlines decontamination, survey and disease management

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry Fruit Harvest Season Purpose of CA and Business Plans Fruit Harvest Season Purpose of CA and Business Plans  CA’s viewed as informational/educational  Compliance monitoring is instructional, no penalties  FDACS/DPI works closely with UF/IFAS to assist growers with business plans  Examples of business plans are available  Regional workshops have been held to cover important information on disease detection and control

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry Fruit Harvest Season Key Priorities Fruit Harvest Season Key Priorities  Completed construction of FDACS-DPI citrus budwood-protection facilities in Levy County; move foundation citrus budwood stock into these facilities  Continued planning of redundant budwood facility in Alachua County  Continue to work closely w/Florida citrus industry to transition into insect-protected structures  Inspect and certify citrus nursery stock on 30-day inspection cycle

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry  Conduct training sessions on disease detection and management techniques  Continue to work cooperatively w/UF- IFAS and USDA to develop science-based regulations governing movement of citrus fruit and nursery stock for domestic and int’l marketplace  Provide industry with services that help keep canker and greening to an acceptable economic threshold Fruit Harvest Season Key Priorities Fruit Harvest Season Key Priorities

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry  Growers completed application and submitted to FDACS/DPI by August 1  Applications indicated shipping intention by grove and by market for fresh fruit  FDACS/USDA began grove surveys in July for the EU, August 1 for U.S., or as required by the receiving market Shipping Season Key Priorities Shipping Season Key Priorities

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry Fresh-Fruit Certification Key Priorities Fresh-Fruit Certification Key Priorities  Fresh fruit exiting the packing house must be free from visible evidence of canker  Compliance agreements at packing houses will be required and administered by USDA-APHIS  All shipments to US non- citrus producing states must have a limited permit, no shipments are allowed to citrus producing states

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry Shipping Residential Citrus Key Priorities  USDA prohibits the shipment of residential citrus outside the state without a limited permit  Currently nine packing houses will accept residential citrus for certification  Shipping only allowed with limited permit to non- citrus producing states

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry CHRP Continuing Initiatives  New Finds  Abandoned Groves  Research Efforts –HLB –Canker  Tools for Industry – Interactive Maps

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry HLB in Polk County: Positive find near citrus nursery 2 citrus nurseries positive HLB find 7,640 feet

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry Map of Greening/ Canker Infestations April 2008 Citrus groves in green Canker infestations in blue Greening infestations in orange CHRP offices denoted w/ 

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry  Scope of problem is wide and diverse  Varying degrees of pest and disease risks  Reasons for abandonment –Commercial groves no longer in production due to pest and disease incursions –Freeze damaged groves –Changes in land use –Planted pines with under-story citrus Abandoned/Volunteer Grove Issues

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry Abandoned/Volunteer Grove Issues  To address all categories/areas would require significant funding resources  Risk-based approach might be more practical  Incentives to participate are needed  Legislation and/or rulemaking may be required

A Study of the Detection of HLB in Citrus Psyllids  Department has developed a robust assay for citrus greening in psyllid vectors  Over 1,200 samples of psyllid adults and nymphs collected from various locations in Florida from visually healthy, as well as HBL-symptomatic trees, were analyzed to monitor the incidence and spread of HLB  Study suggests that discount garden centers and retail nurseries may have played a significant role in the widespread distribution of psyllids and plants carrying HLB pathogens  Spread of HLB may be detected one to several years before the development of HLB symptoms in plants  20% of the psyllids sampled have been positive for HLB Research Efforts Research Efforts Huanglongbing/Greening

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry Analysis of psyllids may provide early warning about citrus greening activity Symptoms found nine months after positive psyllids were detected

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry  Grapefruit infected with canker placed outdoors in proximity to healthy citrus seedlings  Experiment set up in January 2007 and is ongoing  No sign of disease transmission Research Efforts Research Efforts FDACS/DPI’s Disease Transmission Experiment Citrus Canker

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry  Genomics and resistance  Citrus breeding and transformation  Economic analyses  Survival and control experiments  Canker symptoms induction, knowledge-based resistance, and natural resistance potential of citrus Additional Projects (USDA, IFAS, Int’l Scientists) Research Efforts Research Efforts Citrus Canker

CHRP Inter-active Maps Features: -General location of canker and greening -Major roads and TRS -Commercial groves -No multi-blocks -DPI CHRP offices

Add’l Inter-Active Map Features: -Allows viewers to plug addresses in to check distances from data points 8.6 miles

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry CHRP Where do we go from here?  BMPs  Fruit movement issues  Grower services  growing season CHRP Overview

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry Citrus Health Response Program Working together to produce healthy citrus  Whether called recommendations, regulations or guidelines; the intention is to help Florida citrus survive and thrive  CHRP is a cooperative effort w/industry We are here to help

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry Citrus Health Response Program Working together to produce healthy citrus CHRP Helpline