Alele Farm Fresh Produce has said the local industry, worth over 100 million kina annually, faces a real threat from these diseases through the imported Australian potatoes.
“The industry is being threatened since 2003 by over four major diseases and a new disease is looming on the Australian supply chain,” the general manager of Alele Farm Fresh Produce, Graeme Ross told the latest issue of DIDINET News.
DIDINET News is a newsletter that promotes networking among scientists and stakeholders in the agriculture sector. It is produced out of the National Agriculture Research Institute in Lae.
Ross identified the new diseases as leaf roll virus, bacteria wilt, black lake and a new virus that the government has not identified.
“These diseases are uncontrollable with chemicals. If introduced into new soil, the soil can be unproductive for up to 10 years.
“Potato late blight is totally controllable with chemicals and farmer training,” Ross said.
He said a major new threat not clearly reported by the Australian quarantine had been discovered in Australia and distributed by a certified seed grower in Victoria.
Ross said the distribution of disease seeds in Australia now threatened ware or eating potatoes.
“It is now a high risk importing from Australia in Papua New Guinea. The industry is demanding total protection from this potato disease outbreak in Australia.
“Major government agencies support a total ban on ware potatoes coming from Australia,” he said. Ross said to date, Trade and Industry and quarantine had not responded to this threat. “How can Papua New Guinea survive without potatoes? We need potatoes in Papua New Guinea,” the outspoken farmer said.
Ross said potato was very important to PNG and was an important cash crop for small rural farmers.
“It’s a major food source for some high altitude provinces. It is easy to grow and there is a major interest in producing the crop within the country and it is grown in nearly all the provinces,” Ross said.
