17.10.2014

Climate change may hit rice yields in Asia

Rural poverty in parts of Asia could be exacerbated due to negative impacts from climate change on rice production, and a general increase in food prices and the cost of living, says the report of working group two of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment Report.Launched on Thursday, the report Climate Change 2014 Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability of the IPCC says rice is a key staple crop in Asia and 90 per cent or more of the world’s rice production is from Asia. The most vulnerable regions were western Japan, eastern China, the southern part of the Indochina peninsula, and the northern part of South Asia.However, the report has some good news for Pakistan. In contrast, climate change may provide a windfall for wheat farmers in parts of Pakistan. Warming temperatures would make it possible to grow at least two crops (wheat and maize) a year in mountainous areas according to studies.In the Indo-Gangetic Plains of South Asia there could be a decrease of about 50 per cent in the most favourable and high-yielding wheat area as a result of heat stress.The report says Asia experienced the highest number of weather and climate-related disasters in the world during the period 2000–2008 and suffered huge economic losses, accounting for the second highest proportion (27.5 per cent) of the total global economic loss. Flood mortality risk is heavily concentrated in Asia. Severe floods in Mumbai in 2005 have been attributed to both climatic factors and non-climatic factors.Impacts of climate change on food production and food security in Asia will vary by region, with many regions to experience a decline in productivity. This is evident in the case of rice production. People living in low-lying coastal zones and flood plains are probably most at risk from climate change impacts in Asia. Half of Asia’s urban population lives in these areas. Compounding the risk for coastal communities, Asia has more than 90 per cent of the global population exposed to tropical cyclones, the report adds.Source - http://www.thehindu.com/

17.10.2014

Australia - October frost damage to grape vines and grain crops

Frost in the middle of October has South Australian grape and grain growers concerned for their crops.Many farmers in the wheat belt already experienced significant frost damage in August, and now are facing more.Agrilink consultant Mick Faulkner says farmers with sandy soil types, and farming on lower ground, are at risk."For most of South Australia, the crops are well into grain fill and a lot are finished."But for the later areas, particularly in the east of the state...head emergence and flowering and the early stages of grain filling are occurring right now."I think those people are going to have some pretty severe damage."Grape growers worried about frost damage tooGrain growers aren't the only ones worried. Grape vines are also susceptible to frost damage at this time of year.Some grape growers say frost has burnt off shoots on the vines, but luckily this level of damage hasn't been widespread.Brett Schutz, from Tim Adams Wines, just outside of Clare, says their vineyard escaped any serious damage as temperatures dipped below zero last night."I did speak with other growers and there are a few areas, particularly in the lower lying areas, where they've had a fair bit of damage which will affect that first bud shoot."This time last year, the Barossa Valley was experiencing severe frosts which hurt yields.While they've avoided damage this year so far, growers are still on alert."Several growers at Ebenezer have installed frost fans," said Nic Robins, viticultural development officer with the Barossa Grape and Wine Association."A frost fan moves the warm air around."If the frost has settled in a pocket of land that's sloping down, then the frost fan will stir up the warm air and stop the frost conditions from happening."But Ms Robins says vines in the Barossa are looking good so far."The vines are looking good, although we do need a lot more rain soon."Most Barossa growers have started irrigating just because, if we don't do that now, we'll be paying in catch-up later on."Source - http://www.blackseagrain.net/

16.10.2014

Ukraine will be short of 1 MMT of sunseed in 2014

Back in the beginning of harvest, no one could expect Ukraine’s sunseed crop to be that poor.Early sunflower planting – two weeks ahead of normal – resulted in similarly early harvest. Moreover, the harvest pace is somewhat faster than last year. Among other factors, it is promoted by dry weather almost all over Ukraine. Yield is a bit lower than last year, but this decrease was expected.Everything was excellent, the sunseed crop was expected to far exceed 10.5 MMT, specifically to approximate 10.8 MMT (a bit below the 2013 record). But this does not take into account the situation in Donetsk and Luhanskу – a separate matter we’ll dwell on a bit below.The crop situation began to change sharply once harvest started in the southern regions of Ukraine. Very high temperature in the pollination period did cause irreparable damage to the crop, and sunseed yield appeared far below last year’s level, especially in Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Mykolaiv, and Dnipropetrovsk regions. Comparing the current values with last year’s ones, we see rather a deplorable picture. Because of dropped yields, we’ll be short of at least 500 KMT of sunseed in these four regions alone. And if we calculate losses for the whole Ukraine, they will reach at least 1 MMT.Source - http://www.blackseagrain.net/

16.10.2014

USA - October rainfall already well ahead of normal

October rainfall in Springfield is already a half-inch ahead of normal with half of the month remaining.The 3.65 inches of rainfall as of Wednesday is compared with 3.15 inches for a typical October, according to figures from the Illinois State Water Survey in Champaign. September also was unusually wet, with 5.18 inches of rain, compared with 2.9 inches in a normal September.“In the past 90 days, much of western and central Illinois has been 4 to 8 inches or more above normal,” state climatologist Jim Angel said. “That’s one to two months of extra rain in the last 90 days.”September and the first half of October also were slightly cooler than normal, Angel said.Wet weather continues to cause problems for Illinois farmers. A weekly survey by the U.S. Department of Agriculture found a little more than one-third of the corn crop has been harvested, compared with the five-year average of 54 percent.The soybean harvest was 29 percent complete, compared with the five-year average of 52 percent. Farmers still rated 83 percent of corn and 79 percent of soybeans in good to excellent condition.A tornado that touched down Monday near Moweaqua, about 40 miles southeast of Springfield, flattened corn and soybeans, according to a storm summary released Wednesday by the National Weather Service in Lincoln.Source - http://www.sj-r.com/

16.10.2014

USA - Early October hard freeze impacts sunflower crop

Sunflower producers across a large portion of the region saw their growing season come to an end when a hard frost hit the first weekend in October."Some of this year's crop may have frozen before it was fully mature which could affect test weight and oil content to some degree," commented John Sandbakken, executive director of the National Sunflower Association in the association's weekly newsletter."In many cases the freeze was welcome as it will hasten drydown and harvest," he added.More than half of the sunflowers in the Dakotas are mature Ð 55 percent in North Dakota and 56 percent of South Dakota's sunflowers. South Dakota producers have already started harvesting with 3 percent completed as of Oct. 6.Thirteen percent of North Dakota's sunflower crop is rated in excellent condition with 62 in good condition, 20 percent fair, 3 percent poor and 2 percent very poor.South Dakota producers report 63 percent in good/excellent condition, 35 percent fair and 2 percent poor. Minnesota's crop is 37 percent good/excellent, 54 percent fair, 8 percent poor and 1 percent very poor.Source - http://www.theprairiestar.com/

16.10.2014

Italy - Apples and grapes underwater in Northern Italy

After the tragic flooding in Genua on 13th October 2014, many other areas in Northern Italy were hit by strong storms and the areas of Varese, Como, Lecco, Brescia, Pavia and Parma had to deal with particularly difficult situations caused by the heavy rain.A tornado hit the Mantua area damaging houses, roads and warehouses. There was a strong storm in the Pavia area, and hail and wind damaged the orchards were apples and pears had still to be harvested. Some ditches overflowed and various areas were flooded."We still had to harvest pomelle genovesi, a local apple variety. The fruit is indeed damaged, but it is still too difficult to make an assessment," explains Simone Rolandi, who cultivates 8 hectares of orchards."It was the deathblow to an already difficult year because of rain and cold temperatures. Pomelle and golden apples are lost, just like the grapes. The fields that were ready for sowing are flooded," explains Luciano Rosina.According to Coldiretti Alessandria, the lower Piedmont has also been affected. "This is caused by the fact that land is abandoned and by uncontrolled urbanisation."Heavy rain, strong wind and a few hailstorms also hit the Veneto.In the meantime, the Minister for Agricultural Policy Maurizio Martina said there is no particular damage to the agricultural sector in Liguria following the latest flood that hit Genoa, but stressed the importance of passing a law concerning the exploitation of agricultural soil.The Puglia Region has declared the state of agricultural crisis for some municipalities in the Bari and Brindisi areas following the heavy rain and hailstorms that hit the area in the past few days.The weather in the North of the peninsula should finally improve, and the situation should remain stable in the South temperatures often above 25°C.Source - http://www.freshplaza.com/

16.10.2014

Argentina - Hail caused significant losses for pear

Yesterday, the producers, Cipolleti, Fenandez Oro, and Allen, from the province of Rio Negro, were assessing the damage caused by the hail that affected the productive segment located south of Route 22, in the Upper Valley. The producing chambers advanced that, in many cases, the loss had been severe.Rio Negro's Secretary of Fruit Cultures, Alberto Diomedi, confirmed that they had notice that the damage, which was caused on Wednesday, had mainly affected pears. The Secretariat's Control staff has already visited some sectors and noted that, up to the moment, the Upper Valley most affected areas were Cipolletti, to the south and towards the field of Confluencia, and Allen's rural fringe to the west."It is impossible to quantify the damage today but there are marked pears. We will probably have an estimate of the damages in seven days," said Diomedi when he announced that the Secretariat of Fruit Cultures were preparing affidavit forms for the producers that had been affected by hail.In Allen, the hailstorm caused concern among producers, which yesterday began to analyse whether there were damages. Sebastian Hernandez, president of the chamber, said some producers had reported damages in pear crops."Hail and water fell for some eight minutes in my field, but I know of other sectors, further west, where the storm lasted longer and the hail was drier. I think we have to wait to see if the hail caused damage, at least one or two days," said the fruit leader who met with producers yesterday to assess the situation."The damage on pears was total. Some fruits were hit between 14 and 15 times. Some of the red apple varieties might have survived, but the rest is all damaged," said producer Eduardo Artero, who has a farm in the area affected by hail, yesterday.Meanwhile, the Association of Producers of Fernandez Oro stated that the farms in that locality had suffered heavy losses because of the water and the hail. The president of the association said they had lost 50% of the fruits and all of the pears.Source - http://www.freshplaza.com/

16.10.2014

Ghana (Africa) - Gov’t must subsidise agric insurance

The National Insurance Commission (NIC) has called on government to subsidize agricultural insurance products for farmers.The call comes at a time when the NIC says farmers in the country cannot afford premiums charged.In collaboration with the German International Cooperation (GIZ) the NIC launched an agricultural insurance policy to protect farmers against financial risks resulting from the negative impact of climate change.The Ghana Agricultural Insurance Pool (GAIP) was set up in 2011 to provide agricultural insurance for farmers and financiers of agriculture in Ghana.The Pool is made up of 19 non-life insurance companies in Ghana and it operates under the umbrella of the Ghana Insurers Association (GIA).The project also aims at laying the foundation for the development of further agricultural insurance products potentially through investments in meteorological infrastructure to improve data collection and analysis.The insurance packages under the project are intended to protect farmers, agro-processors, rural and financial institutions and input dealers, among others, in the event of crop failure due to extreme weather conditions like drought, excess rainfall and floods.Though the policy on its inception had well over three thousand farmers buy premiums, these numbers have dropped significantly to about three hundred because the farmers say the premiums are expensive.Speaking to Citi Business News Commissioner of Insurance of the National Insurance Commission Lydia Lariba Bawa said government should have a budgetary allocation for subsidies on agricultural insurance to enroll more farmers on the scheme.“We need to subsidize the policy for the farmers because Nigeria does and in the Western world they do too. When you go to Eastern and Southern Africa agric insurance is a big thing especially due to the fact that they are into mechanized farming. Therefore government must consider reducing the price of the premiums for the farmers who can be encouraged to stay in the profession.”She bemoaned that most Ghanaian farmers are into peasant farming saying the pilot project was successful but the government should step in to subsidize the policy for the farmers.Source - http://www.ghanaweb.com/

16.10.2014

India - Rain destroys paddy in far-west

Rainfall induced by Cyclone Hudhud in India has destroyed paddy in huge amount in the far-western region of Nepal.Farmers had harvested rice but were yet to collect it from the fields and then came the sudden rain, causing loss to them."The paddy fields have been inundated," said Ram Sworup Chaudhary of Gadariya, Kailali. "Earlier, the paddy was swept away by floods and now rain has destroyed it," he added.Paddy planted in around 10 bigha land had been swept away in the floods that occurred mid-August in Kailali district, leaving farmers' here at their wit's end.Rewati Joshi, an officer at the District Agriculture Development Office, Kailali, said the recent rainfall damaged paddy in huge amount.According to the office's data, of the total paddy planted in 71,000 hectare of land, farmers have harvested only 7 per cent so far. Approximately 2.5 lakh metric tonnes of paddy is produced every year in the district.But this year, the farmers are going to incure a huge loss, earlier floods and now rainfall have destroyed the crop.All nine districts, including Kailali and Kanchanpur, of the region were hit hard due to rainfall. "The sudden rain has put farmers in despair," said Rajesh KC, crop specialist of Far-western Regional Agriculture Directorate, Dipayal. Temperatures in western hill areas have suddenly plummeted, making folks here ill.Meanwhile, paddy in large quantity in dozen more village development committees of Saptari was destroyed due to rain yesterday night.The crop grown in Bhutahi, Tarahi, Pato, Mallekpur, Aurahi, Khadgapur, Narghau among other VDCs was destroyed.Paddy in 25 bigha land in Bhutahi ward No 5, 6 and 7 has submerged, said farmer Udit Narayan Chaudhary.Similarly, paddy in Mallekpur-5, Khurhuriya area, was completely destroyed due to rain, said another local farmer Tej Narayan Yadav.Source - http://www.thehimalayantimes.com/

15.10.2014

USA - Grape farmers count heavy loss of vines from polar vortex

Vineyard farmers might be done removing their dead grape vines from last winter’s devastating freezing conditions, but many agree the jury is still out on how much lasting damage the polar vortex will leave on Ohio’s northern wine industry.Depending on the variety grown, Ohio’s vineyards counted grape losses between 29 percent and 97 percent this summer, according to the Ohio Agricultural Research Development Center.But the bigger focus is on the future of the region’s vines because it can take up to three years before a replanted vine can produce new fruit.And planting an acre of new vines costs approximately $15,000, said Donniella Winchell, executive director of the Ohio Wine Producers Association.Winchell said vineyards across the state reported a 30 percent to 50 percent vine loss this year connected to the polar vortex.“I do not know of anyone who is not going to replant,” Winchell said, adding that she believes there will be more rehabbing than replanting.She said the Ohio State University Extension offices and U.S. Department of Agriculture have provided mentoring and financial assistance.David Marrison, an associate professor of agriculture and natural resources for Ashtabula’s Ohio State University Extension office, has studied the polar vortex’s impact on the vineyard-industry in Ashtabula and Lake counties. He said the total loss of vines and grapes in that area alone reached up to $15 million, conservatively.“The story is not yet completely shut on the damage that occurred last winter,” Marrison said.That’s because farmers are still finding cases of crown gall, a bacterial disease, in the vines damaged from the polar vortex.In addition, the polar vortex depleted the strength of many healthy vines, leaving them vulnerable to death if this winter brings similar freezing conditions to last season.Winchell said the uncertainty hasn’t left a worrisome impression on Ohio’s wine grape growers, which continue to welcome new vineyards — most recently Hundley Cellars in Harpersfield Township opening nearly a month ago.Leonard Blackie, another wine grape farmer who is in the midst of establishing his own vineyard between Madison and Harpersfield townships called Laurentia, said the polar vortex might have killed some of his crop this year, but it hasn’t impacted his plans.“This is not California, its Northeast Ohio,” the Madison Township resident said. “Any farmer is at risk of mother nature any year.”Blackie said his farm has 29 acres of vines with more on the way, but isn’t yet set on an opening date for the winery.“The reason we’re growing here is because we think the region can grow world-class wine,” he said.Art Pietrzyk, owner of St. Joseph Vineyard in Madison and Thompson townships has a similar positive outlook on the local industry’s future despite that his farm produced virtually no grapes this year.Fortunately, his farm has enough “bumper” inventory of wine grapes harvested in 2013 to avoid importing grapes elsewhere, he said.Pietrzyk started the vineyard in 1986 and calls last winter’s polar vortex very unique in the damage it inflicted. And it’s not merely because of the cold--his farm has endured worse temperatures in past years. What made this one different, he said, was how fast the weather changed in early January.The day before the polar vortex plunged temperatures below 0 Fahrenheit, Pietrzyk remembered the rainy, 40-degree weather washing away the snow on his farm and waking the vines from their dormancy.“We’re talking about a swing of 60 degree in 36 hours,” he said.If it wasn’t for that, his vines would’ve had a better chance surviving, he said.Nevertheless, 75 percent of the vines on his 25-acre farm have suckers and he’s hoping they produce fruit next year if all goes well, he said.Source - http://www.news-herald.com/

15.10.2014

Australia - Farmers start destroying watermelon as severity of virus quarantine takes hold

Watermelon growers in the Katherine region of the Northern Territory have started ploughing in their own crops to stop the potential spread of a devastating plant virus.Several farms near Katherine and another farm near Darwin have tested positive for Cucumber Green Mottle Mosaic Virus and have been ordered to destroy their crops within the next two weeks.Quarantine signs have been placed on all farm gates in the quarantine zones and a number of properties were busy destroying crops this morning.It's the first time the virus has ever been found in Australia.Source - http://www.freshplaza.com/

15.10.2014

Pakistan - PPCBL allocates Rs 2.5 billion for agriculture loans

The Punjab Provincial Co-operative Bank Ltd (PPCBL) has allocated Rs 2.5 billion for advancing agriculture loans for Rabi crops 2014-15, PPCBL spokesman Rana Irshad Ali told on Monday. He said the bank has started disbursing loans through Co-operative Societies from Monday that would continue till December 31, 2014 for sowing of wheat, grams, oil seeds, lentils, maize, vegetables, fodder, sunflower and orchards.These loans are liable to be paid back by June 30, 2015. He said that the PPCBL has issued loan policy for Rabi crops 2014-2015 to enable the small farmers and members of the co-operative committees to achieve much needed agriculture production target. These loans will be advanced hundred percent in cash. President/CEO PPCBL Muhammad Ayub said that under the directions of the State Bank of Pakistan insurance of the crops would be necessary for getting the agriculture loans. The owners or farmers of more than 25 acres of land would have to pay the premium from their own pocket.Source - http://www.blackseagrain.net/

15.10.2014

Canada - Manitoba still assessing damage caused by summer flood

It's been three months since Manitoba called in the military to fight floodwater coming from the west but the province still doesn't know how much that flood cost.Agriculture Minister Ron Kostyshyn says they are still assessing the damage caused to Manitoba farmers who bore the brunt of the flood.Some have estimated the flood will end up costing Prairie farmers up to $1 billion in lost revenue.Kostyshyn says about 405,000 hectares of land is eligible for crop insurance because of excess moisture.But he says it will take some time to figure out exactly what toll the flood took.Torrential rain in Saskatchewan and Manitoba at the beginning of July caused widespread, overland flooding in rural areas.Manitoba declared a state of emergency and called in the military to help shore up flood defences as floodwater made its way from Saskatchewan. While urban centres were largely left unscathed, the floodwater turned fields into lakes.The Saskatchewan government estimates the flood cost the province at least $150 million. Manitoba's NDP government hasn't hazarded a figure."I think it would only be fair to give the media a true dollar figure once we have all the assessment done, whether it's from the livestock sector or the crop side," Kostyshyn said Tuesday.Source - http://www.cbc.ca/

15.10.2014

Australia - Crown rot causing up to 50 per cent yield losses with increased number of infestations in WA this season

An increased number of paddocks effected by crown rot have been detected in Western Australia this season.Crown rot is a fungal disease that attacks the bottom stems of mostly cereal crops, starving plants of water and creating empty heads or chaff, commonly known as whiteheads.Farmers are being urged to keep their eyes peeled for the disease as harvest approaches, after some producers reported 30 to 50 per cent yield losses this season.DAFWA research officer Daniel Huberli says while farmers can't do anything about the disease this year, it's something to keep in mind when planning next year's crop."It's quite a big issue and if you combine root diseases and crown rot diseases it's about $105 million a year in yield losses for wheat and barley in WA which is quite significant," he says.DAFWA and the GRDC are working on trials to discover which varieties do benefit those with potential crown rot problems, with results to be published in the 2016 sowing guides.Source - http://www.abc.net.au/

15.10.2014

India - Cyclone Hudhud may leave crop insurance claims worth Rs 1,500 crore in its wake

Cyclone HudHud that hit the coastal regions of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh over the weekend may not have claimed many human lives, but the damage it brought to crops may cost insurers up to Rs 1,500 crore.The two states were hit by a similar storm a year earlier. Cyclone Phailin in 2013 had also cost Rs 1,500 crore to insurers. The Agriculture Insurance Corporation alone had shelled out Rs 1,200 crore under the National Agriculture Insurance Scheme, Modified National Agriculture Scheme and Weather-Based Insurance Scheme at the time.This time, too, claims will come under yield-related insurance products like the National Agriculture Insur ance Scheme and Modified National Agriculture Scheme, said an Agriculture Insurance Corporation executive. Private-sector insurers HDFC Ergo and ICICI Lombard are also active in writing weather-based insurance cover.Despite facing large claims last year, insurers could not increase premiums as rates are capped. But they have shrunk coverage. "We are not allowed to raise premium rates so we have tweaked terms of insurance to cope with heavy losses from recent incidents," said an executive from an insurance company.Weather-Based Crop Insurance Scheme is intended to provide insurance protection to the cultivator against adverse weather incidents, such as deficit and excess rainfall, frost and heat wave conditions.Farmers in Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh, which are also likely to see some impact of Cyclone HudHud, could get only limited claim payout under the Weather-Based Insurance Scheme since the two states have crossed the period for which the scheme is valid."We are keeping a tab on the situation and there will be some claims under the weather-based insurance cover from Chhattisgarh," said Sanjay Datta head of motor insurance ICICI Lombard.Crops insurance is provided for the two seasons of kharif and rabi. More than two lakh hectare of farmland was devastated when cyclone Phailin hit the coastal areas of in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha on October 12, 2013.Also, over Rs 5,000 crore of crop loans could turn bad because of the damage to crops from the hailstorms that several parts of the country witnessed early this year.Source - http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/

15.10.2014

France - Bumper wine grape harvest clouded by threat of wood decay

The French grape harvest has produced a bumper crop for 2014 after two years of adverse weather conditions.But the smiles could be wiped off winegrowers’ faces if wood decay disease, which now affects 12 per cent of vines in all of France’s wine-growing regions, continues its relentless march across the country.The spread of the disease by three types of fungi which attack the vines has so alarmed experts that it is being compared to phylloxera, the deadly disease which decimated French vineyards at the end of the 19th century.“There’s no miracle solution in sight,” said specialist Olivier Yobregat from the south-western branch of the French Wine Institute, located in Lisle-sur-Tarn. “Winegrowers want answers, but this disease is very complex. A lot of the research being done will only bring results in the long term,” he said.Until then, following the withdrawal of the only effective treatment, sodium arsenite pesticide which was withdrawn in 2001 because of its toxicity, “there’s nothing to be done”.The three fungi, including one with the ominous name black dead arm, are not a new phenomenon and have been in the soil since antiquity. They are present in all the Mediterranean countries as well as the US and Canada. One, eutypa lata, has a simple structure and can be kept under control by protecting pruning wounds on the vine.However, the other two, black dead arm and esca, are more complex and prolific. The vines can rot and die within seven or eight years of being infected.According to Mr Yobregat, the vineyards of western France – including the Loire valley and the Bordeaux region – are more susceptible to the fungi, probably because of the humidity. Also some grapes are more sensitive, such as the cabernet sauvignon used in claret, and the sauvignon blanc planted in Alsace.The disease was kept at bay by sodium arsenite for more than a century. But in the last two years wood decay has returned with a vengeance.“The grape harvest in the last two years was poor because of a lot of damage from storms and bad weather. Now we have a good harvest, but this is the second year we have had very strong symptoms of the wood decay disease,” said Mr Yobregat.“The wood decay disease affecting 12 per cent of the vines means a loss of income of a billion euros for the sector,” the president of the French Institute of Wine, Bernard Nadal, told Le Figaro.France’s wine industry employs 600,000 people, and according to the Agriculture Ministry this year’s grape harvest will produce 46 million hectolitres of wine. That’s two per cent higher than the average five-yearly yield, and reflects a bumper harvest everywhere except in Languedoc Roussillon, where heavy rain pounded the vines at the end of September.Mr Yobregat rejected comparisons between the wood decay disease and phylloxera which, he stressed, had been a “new” disease imported from America, which had an “explosive” effect on unprotected vines.French winegrowers face other new invasive pests thanks to globalisation, he added. The latest is the Suzuki fruit fly from Asia, which arrived in France and began destroying strawberries before affecting grapes. “In just one year, they can do a lot of damage,” he said.Research on tackling the deadly wood decay disease is focused on the genetic development of vines which are more resistant to the fungi, and finding out why some strains are less likely to be affected. Researchers are also studying how sodium arsenite worked, in case its mechanisms can be adapted for future use.Source - http://www.independent.co.uk/