Potato mop-top virus is here to stay and its source is unlikely to ever be discovered, Biosecurity Tasmania has said. Following extensive testing and tracing of Tasmania’s certified seed potato lines, nearly 2,000 tonnes of seed potato will be destroyed to prevent further spreading, according to a report by Meg Fergusson for ABC News.

The testing was triggered after the virus was detected on a farm in the state’s north-west in July, marking its first confirmed appearance on Australian soil.

Over the past four weeks, more than 100,000 tubers from nearly 400 different seed lines have been collected and sent to laboratories in Adelaide and Hobart for testing.

“PTMV was detected in only a relatively minor proportion of the significant volume of certified seed tested,” Biosecurity Tasmania announced.

Biosecurity Tasmania said the virus could not be eradicated, despite the “relatively minor” detection.

That was mainly due to the widespread presence of powdery scab, a pathogen that can carry the virus undetected for many years in the soil but has no known elimination method.

Tasmanian Certified Seed Potato Scheme (TasSeed) manager, Doug Clark, said scientists were working on a soil test that would be able to test paddocks for disease before a crop is planted.

Source: ABC News. Read the full story
Image: Potato mop-top virus creates rust coloured arcs in the vegetable flesh. Credit New Zealand Ministry for Primary Industries