Minas Gerais citrus growers have until July 15th to submit a health report

HLB (huanglongbing), also known as greening, is a disease that affects citrus production around the world. In Minas Gerais, the tangerine crop is the most affected by this pest. According to the Minas Gerais Agricultural Institute (IMA), an agency linked to the State Department of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply, the proliferation of HLB is more aggressive in this crop, resulting in the loss of a large part of production in one year.

In lemon and orange production, disease progression occurs more slowly, however, these plantations also deserve attention. This disease has no treatment and is transmitted by a psyllid, a tiny insect that spreads from a central point. As a measure to protect citrus crops, IMA alerts citrus growers to send the HLB/greening inspection report, for the first half of 2024, by 15/7. The form is available on the IMA website.

The mandatory action, determined by legislation published by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (Mapa), requires that there be a documented inspection every three months in the municipalities where HLB/greening occurs and in neighboring municipalities. To do this, the producer must hire an agronomist who has passed the Phytosanitary Certificate of Origin (CFO) course, taught by IMA.

Every six months, the citrus grower must send the agency a report with the information from this inspection. The report for the first semester must be sent by 15/7, while the report for the second semester must be sent by 15/1 of the following year.

“Sending information is important so that we, as an official body, can be aware of the distribution of HLB in the municipalities and properties affected by the disease. Furthermore, it allows the producer to know the pest situation in his orchard and take the most appropriate control measures”, explains Leonardo do Carmo, plant health defense manager at IMA. 

According to data from Seapa, from June 2024, Minas Gerais is the second largest orange producer in Brazil, responsible for 6,4% of national production, which corresponds to more than a thousand tons per year, behind only São Paulo, responsible for more than 70% of Brazilian production.

Minas also occupies the second national position in lemon production, with 6,4% of Brazilian production, and, once again, the state of São Paulo is the largest producer of the fruit, with 70% of production, according to data from Seapa do year 2023.

The same happens with tangerine production in the state of Minas Gerais, occupying second place in national production, responsible for more than 20%, equivalent to 225 thousand tons per year. São Paulo is the largest producer in the country, accounting for 34% of the national production of this fruit.

With such significant numbers, the measures adopted by IMA seek to protect the state from the pest, which, once installed, requires the destruction of orchards as a way to prevent the disease from spreading to neighboring properties, which would cause more damage to producers and disastrous consequences for the Minas Gerais economy.

“In the last semester, more than 200 thousand plants had to be destroyed in Minas Gerais due to the rapid spread of the pest between leaves and fruits, also representing a great risk for neighboring regions. The presence of the disease makes it difficult to sell these fruits on the market, as the juice industry and local traders do not want to purchase a product without the expected quality", reinforced Leonardo. 

Presence of the disease in Minas 

One of the great dangers of this pest is that the plant can remain asymptomatic for up to two years, making detection difficult. When symptoms appear, the disease manifests itself through yellowing branches and mosaics on the leaves. In the fruits, there is a deformation in which one side becomes larger than the other and the seeds are aborted. Disease vectors prefer young leaves, making the rainy season, with more sprouts, the most favorable for contamination. During drought, symptoms are more evident due to plant stress due to lack of hydration.

In the state of Minas, the areas with the highest incidence of HLB are the Triângulo Mineiro, the South of Minas, the Alto Paranaíba, the Zona da Mata and the Central region of the state, this being the one that suffers the most, as it is a major producer of state tangerine. "The high incidence in the Central region is probably due to the lack of eradication of diseased plants and inadequate control of the vector," says Leonardo. 

Although the Triângulo Mineiro is the area with the lowest incidence of the pest in Minas Gerais, in 2023 it showed a significant increase in the disease and concerns the IMA, since it is the region of Minas that concentrates the largest orange production in the state, responsible for more than 60% of production, according to the Citrus Defense Fund (Fundecitrus). In the region, four municipalities stand out: Prata (15%), Comendador Gomes (25%), Frutal (14%) and Uberlândia (13%).

Other obligations of the producer

In addition to submitting the inspection report every six months, citrus growers must comply with other requirements set out by law, such as the registration and inspection of citrus-producing properties, and compliance with rules for the construction of citrus seedling nurseries. It is also necessary to have the Plant Transit Permit (PTV), granted by IMA after obtaining the Phytosanitary Certificate of Origin (CFO) or the Consolidated Phytosanitary Certificate of Origin (CFOC), with an Additional Declaration confirming that the cargo is exempt from the HLB /greening.

The transit of vegetables is a concern for IMA, since contaminated seedlings, when transported from one place to another, can spread the disease.

Leonardo do Carmo reinforces the importance of registering citrus-producing properties with the IMA, a legal and fundamental requirement in the quest to eradicate the pest, as it allows the body to monitor production in the state and, thus, be able to contain possible outbreaks of the disease. In addition to these actions, the pilot project “Viva Citros” was recently developed in the cities of Formoso and Buritis, in the northwest of Minas Gerais, with the aim of raising awareness among producers about the importance of monitoring orchards against diseases that affect the citrus belt. and the correct use and storage of pesticides in order to guarantee plant health in the state.