Te Puke grower Robbie Ellison says his worst fears about the PSA vine disease have been realised.
Seeka, which helped develop the gold kiwifruit industry in Italy, says its Italian orchard produced 1 million trays of fruit in 2008 and PSA destroyed the orchard 12 months later.
sMr Ellison ays the disease became more obvious on Italian orchards in spring and signs are already starting to appear on his orchards.
He says the disease may be developing more quickly in Te Puke because of the favourable weather conditions.
Mr Ellison says he's already had to cut out one hectare of gold kiwifruit vines and is looking at the possibility of removing more.
John Cook, another Te Puke grower, has already had to cut out three hectares of gold kiwifruit vines from his orchards.
He says the next couple of weeks will reveal whether the disease has spread further.
Seeka chief executive, Michael Franks says seven hectares of the company's own vines have had to be removed, at a cost of $500,000 in lost income.
