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Home | Jamaica Banana Board on high alert for deadly banana & plantain disease
General Manager at the Jamaica Banana Board, Mrs. Janet Conie
The Jamaica Banana Board is on high alert for the prevention of Tropical Race 4 Disease (TR4), which is known to be extremely devastating to the production of bananas and plantains.
The disease, which is caused by a fungus known as, Fusarium Odorotisimum, has been a cause for concern within our banana and plantain industry, as it was recently discovered in Venezuela and Peru, after entering the Americas and Colombia in 2019. Consequently, the Jamaica Banana Board is ramping up its preventative measures to ensure the disease does not enter Jamaica’s shores.
In fact, General Manager at the Jamaica Banana Board, Mrs. Janet Conie advises that an Action Plan designed by a Task Force is being implemented as part of the preventative strategy.
“The Action and Contingency Plan includes several components: strengthening of institutional capacity, disease surveillance and diagnosis, border security, farm biosafety and preparedness with simulation for the first disease outbreak. The plan is designed with all the necessary programmes, systems, activities, and tools to prevent the disease from entering the shores of Jamaica and to otherwise ensure early detection in order to prevent spreading” Mrs. Conie stated.
She highlights that bananas are the cheapest source of starch and most of the 72,848 tonnes of bananas and 60,586 tonnes of plantains produced in Jamaica (in 2022) is consumed locally. Therefore, the disease poses a significant threat to both plant health and food security.
According to Mr. Damion Rowe, Chief Plant Quarantine Produce Inspector in the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, “the effect of TR4 Disease on banana production is costly. The best way of mitigating the impact of TR4 on banana production in a country is exclusion. Therefore, people who visit banana/plantain fields in countries with TR4 Disease must leave clothes or shoes in that country, or do not visit those fields. Also, importation of banana and plantain plants or plantlets, as well as other hosts such as Heliconia from countries where TR4 Disease is present is strictly prohibited. Finally, tissue culture in-vitro plantlets and cut flowers imported from other countries must be adequately tested or screened for diseases and a permit received from the PQPI Branch prior to importation”.
The banana and plantain industry continues to be a notable contributor to the nation’s agricultural sector. As Wednesday April 19, 2023, continues to be observed as Banana Day, the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries commits its support for industry farmers, stakeholders, and the Jamaica Banana Board.
The Ministry continues to promote its Grow Smart, Eat Smart message, as through this strategy, the banana and plantain sector can strengthen its farming techniques and boost production, taking Jamaica one step closer to achieving food security and a sustainable agricultural sector.
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