Radio New Zealand - Te Reo Irirangi o Aotearoa

PSA disease control area extended

Updated at 2:40 pm on 5 November 2012

Further outbreaks of the PSA vine disease in the Coromandel region have prompted Kiwifruit Vine Health to extend its control area to cover all kiwifruit blocks there.

It is two months since the bacterial disease was first found on four vines of the new Gold 9 variety of kiwifruit in the Whenuakite area of Coromandel.

KVH set up a control zone 10km around the orchard and warned 18 growers with blocks outside the zone, to take all precautions possible to reduce the chance of the disease spreading.

However, there have since been further confirmations of PSA-V, the virulent strain of the disease, in the Whenuakite area.

The agency has now received positive test results on four blocks of green kiwifruit near Whangamata.

KVH has also received confirmation in the past week of another 46 blocks of kiwifruit in Bay of Plenty, Waikato and Franklin having the disease.

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