Xylella fastidiosa, a bacterium with pathogenic potential that has transmitted diseases in a variety of woody crops and trees and that has raised the alarm throughout Europe, continues to infect crops in Puglia, Italy, where 56 new cases of infected olive trees have been detected, in addition of two almond trees in Taranto and Brindisi.
This is confirmed by the Italian organization Coldiretti Puglia after learning the results of the analyzes carried out during the seventh update of the monitoring, in whose samples these new cases of Xylella have been found.
For the entity, «farmers are experiencing a critical period, between the advancement of Xylella and the crises caused by the emergence of the coronavirus», so it is urgent that the infected plants be eliminated so that the outbreak does not continue to advance.
“The monitoring activity is decisive to control and try to stop the progression of the disease, avoiding another infringement procedure of the European Union (EU). As a result of climate change and globalization, the arrival of infected plant material and pests multiply, proving to be a massacre for crops, «says Coldiretti Puglia President Savino Muraglia.
According to the Italian organization, to eliminate the infected crops and support the measures imposed by the EU, it is necessary for agricultural companies that comply with the necessary requirements and have the specific technology to do so, take over the elimination of trees infected by the bacteria to contain the disease.
In addition, the director of Coldiretti Puglia, Pietro Piccioni, adds that «the monitoring and sampling system needs to be strengthened because it is still based, mainly, on the visual analysis of the olive trees that are often asymptomatic», as he considers that there are not enough funds intended to track and progress the bacterial life stages, as well as to help make good practices in agriculture more effective.