Deadline for submitting the Cancro-Greening report is July 15th in São Paulo

The Agricultural Defense Coordination (CDA) of the Secretariat of Agriculture and Supply (SAA) of the State of São Paulo issued a warning to citrus growers who have not yet sent the Cancro/Greening report, that the deadline for delivering the document is the next Monday, July 15th. According to the computerized animal and plant management system, Gedave, 5670 reports (54,7%) were delivered, which is equivalent to 88,8 million plants inspected, of which 800 thousand were eradicated due to showing symptoms of Greening .

In the first half of 2024, 96,6% of the citrus sector managed to meet the delivery deadline for the document that reported the inspections carried out between July 1st and December 31st, 2023, which corresponded to 219,8 million plants inspected and 2,3 million eradicated.

“It is important to emphasize the obligation and importance of submitting the biannual report on citrus plants, as citrus canker and Greening are diseases under official control and cause production and marketing restrictions for citrus producers, making it essential to monitor the orchard and declaration of results”, comments Veridiana Zocoler de Mendonça, agronomist and manager of the State Citrus Health Program.

With the publication of Ordinance Mapa nº 317, of May 21, 2021, which establishes the National HLB Prevention and Control Program (PNCHLB), the elimination of symptomatic plants became mandatory only for orchards under eight years of age, and for orchards above this age, producers are only required to carry out efficient psyllid control. In the State of São Paulo, delivery of the report is mandatory for all producers, regardless of the age of the plants.

Citrus canker

Citrus Canker is caused by bacteria Xanthomonas citri pv. citrus which attacks all varieties and species of citrus, causes lesions on leaves, fruits and branches and, when in high incidence, causes defoliation and fruit fall. It is a restrictive pest for the commercialization of fruits to other States and also for export.

Since 2017, with the publication of Resolution of the Ministry of Agriculture (Mapa) nº 4, of March 22, the state of São Paulo has been recognized as an area under the Risk Mitigation System (SMR) for citrus canker. This procedure makes it possible to adopt phytosanitary measures with the aim of reducing the pest's inoculum potential and maintaining an appropriate level of protection against the disease, enabling the sale of symptom-free fruits both on the domestic and international markets.

HLB (greening)

In the case of HLB (Greening), there is a record of its occurrence throughout the state of São Paulo. The disease is caused by bacteria Candidatus Liberibacter spp. and spread by the psyllid (diaphorina citri). It is considered the biggest threat to the sustainability of citrus farming.

Whistleblowing

The reporting channel aims to inform the Agricultural Defense of the location of these abandoned or poorly managed citrus orchards, so that education and awareness actions can be carried out for producers so that the necessary measures can be adopted to control greening. In accordance with Ordinance SDA/Mapa nº 317, of May 21, 2021, and SAA Resolution nº 88, of December 08, 2021, in all orchards with citrus plants, it is mandatory to carry out efficient control of the psyllid, and in orchards up to eight years old, the producer must eliminate symptomatic plants.