Mapa opens public consultation on the National Citrus Disease Prevention and Control Program

The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply (Mapa) published, this Friday (30/09), the Ordinance No. 661 which submits to public consultation, for a period of 60 days, the proposed change in the National Prevention and Control Program for the disease called Huanglongbing (HLB) - also known as Greening - caused by the bacterium Candidatus Liberibacter spp.  

This is the main citrus disease and the biggest threat to the world's citrus industry, as it attacks all types of citrus and there is no cure for diseased plants. In Brazil, the pest is present and under official control in the states of Minas Gerais, Paraná, São Paulo and Mato Grosso do Sul. 

“The objective of the public consultation is to provide broad participation and discussion on specific adjustments, identified during the development of tools to support the execution and audit of the new procedures established by Ordinance 317/2021”, explains the general coordinator of Plant Protection of the Map, Graciane de Castro. 

Among the changes presented, the criteria for the mandatory elimination of host plants with symptoms of the disease in commercial orchards stand out, according to the different species cultivated.

The proposed change was prepared collaboratively with representatives of State Plant Health Bodies involved in disease monitoring and control actions. 

Technically substantiated suggestions must be sent through the Normative Acts Monitoring System (Sisman), of the Secretariat of Agricultural Defense, through the link available here. To access Sisman, the user must register in advance in the Access Request System (SOLICITA), through the link.