Wine Australia and Hort Innovation have teamed up through the Plant Biosecurity Research Initiative ( PBRI ) to safeguard the nation against a devastating bacterium that could lame the country ’s multi - billion clam wine and horticulture sector .
Xylella fastidiosa is an alien bacteria that prevents a works from feeding by impeding the bm of rising sap .
While Australia is presently free from Xylella , it threatens more than 350 commercial , ornamental and native works species across the state .
The impact of Xylella oversea has been catastrophic , infecting more than 200 million citrus fruit trees in Brazil , destroying 1 million European olive tree trees in Italy and devastating the Californian grape sphere – causing annual losses in nimiety of US$ 100 million .
Dr Jo Luck , platform manager at the PBRI , said there was no known cure and prevention was the only safeguard against what has been deemed Australia ’s most minatory exotic industrial plant disease .
“ If established , the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences ( ABARES ) has guess the potential cost to Australia ’s grape and vino sphere alone at up to $ 7.9 billion . The impact on Australian horticulture would be just as withering , ” she said .
“ Through the PBRI , we are take a interconnected approach , together with the nation ’s seven plant - focus research and development corporations , Plant Health Australia , the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources , manufacture , state and Union biosecurity stakeholders , to stamp this threat out before it can take root . ”
Wine Australia and Hort Innovation are presently enter a Xylella coordinator to spring up inquiry and evolution priorities and projects to help protect Australia ’s wine-coloured and horticulture sector .
Dr Liz Waters , Wine Australia ’s General Manager for Research , Development and Extension ( RD&E ) , state the coordinator part was a full of life investing in protect all of Australia ’s rural communities against Xylella .
“ Xylella has the potential to touch many different flora industries and the coordinator will manage cross - sectoral biosecurity preparedness , act in a liaison use for potentially affected sectors , and ascertain there is national awareness and coordination of high - priority RD&E to forestall the pest arriving and establishing . ”
David Moore , Hort Innovation General Manager for Research and Development , said the Xylella Coordinator would avail to facilitate projection management of two further projects presently under evaluation .
“ The menace that this disease poses across Australia has pick up a focusing on collaboration across agricultural research and growth corporations , ” he sound out .
“ Not only have we joined forces with Wine Australia on this labor , we are also working with a number of stakeholders on two additional projection to investigate strategy for prevention and preparedness , as well as the critique and adoption of the human beings ’s best - pattern symptomatic methods for the detection and identification of Xylella , ” he said .
For more information : Hort Innovationhorticulture.com.au
