All original gold kiwifruit plants in Te Puke are to be completely cut out, according to reports.
Plans are reportedly being formulated in New Zealand to abandon all original gold kiwifruit plants in Te Puke, the region worst affected by the deadly Psa outbreak that continues to hit the country.
One News reported that the industry is looking to cut its losses as it becomes clear that the region's gold variety cannot be saved from the vine killing bacteria, and could in fact be contributing to the problem further, , Americafruit said.
"It gets so badly infected that it is a source of innoculant, infecting other varieties," said John Burke of Kiwifruit Vine Health.
"We've got to put a bit of science behind that, but that's our theory at the moment."
The gold variety makes up just over 20 per cent of the country's total kiwifruit exports, at a value well over NZ$200 million (£99.3 m).
While 45 per cent of the country's gold production is found in Te Puke, other Psa affected regions could also be on the end of the cull, One News continued.
However, industry leader Zespri apparently wants to conduct more research before making any drastic decisions.
"Whilst beating Psa is our objective, we also need to make a balance and ensure that we have a sustainable gold variety going forward," said the group's Simon Limmer.
No comments yet