The New Zealand kiwifruit industry is beginning to emerge from the impacts of the vine disease Psa-V stronger, more resilient and with a promising future, says Kiwifruit Vine Health's CEO.

Barry O'Neil, Kiwifruit Vine Health chief executive officer is growing the new gold variety G3 on his orchard.

'We are not out of the woods yet and for some, Psa has spelled the end of their time as growers but in the last three years the industry has made amazing progress,” says KVH chief executive officer Barry O'Neil.

'I don't believe any other New Zealand primary industry group, with the exception of Fonterra, could have handled the bio-security incursion and progressed through it as well as the kiwifruit industry has; and that's largely due to the industry's integrated nature,” says Barry, who is a biosecurity operational specialist.

Before taking up the position with KVH, he was in senior management and leadership roles as a consultant, and with MAF Biosecurity NZ (now part of the Ministry for Primary Industries), in New Zealand and overseas. Barry led MAF's emergency response efforts into incursions, including the initial MAF response work to Psa and has been involved in other New Zealand incursions, including the hoax foot and mouth outbreak on Waiheke Island in 2005 and the illegal introduction of the rabbit calicivirus in 1997.

He's also a kiwifruit grower with a new variety orchard near Katikati, which has been infected with Psa.

Faith
Barry's faith in the kiwifruit industry's future is based on a number of factors, including what he has observed happens when an industry is affected by a bio-security incursion.
'Initially, everyone really struggles with the impacts of the event, but over time ends up stronger; and especially in the case of bio-security, [we're] better prepared to cope with future incursions, because there will be others.”

The innovation of growers, post-harvest companies, scientists and companies providing products and services to the industry has also impressed Barry, who says the level of co-operation across the entire industry and the sharing of knowledge and personnel have been remarkable.

So has the planting, in just three years, of 4000 ha of the new, more Psa-tolerant gold variety G3, most of which has been in response to the disease.

'We are very fortunate that G3 was ready for commercial release and is more tolerant of the disease.”

Production lift
Barry says some green growers in Te Puke, with orchards infected with Psa, have actually lifted their production. 'It's quite an amazing result; and I think what has happened is that by having to pay closer attention to their orchards, because of Psa, these growers have actually improved their management practices which has resulted in increased production.”

Psa infection levels are much lower this spring than last, which may be due to the long, hot summer and mild winter – conditions not favoured by the disease. But Barry says it also appears removing so much of the highly susceptible gold Hort16A variety has significantly reduced inoculum levels, especially in the Te Puke area.

Initially, the industry had hoped Psa could be eradicated. But Barry says, from the start, MAF's technical advisors said it is highly unlikely it could be achieved for a number of reasons, including bacterial diseases being extremely difficult to contain.

'We also didn't have the rapid testing, which became available later, to confirm Psa. So it took at least a week to culture the bacteria, by which time it would have spread further.”

The industry initially didn't have the legal powers to require growers to protect and manage disease in their vines, which is now possible under the National Psa-V Pest Management Plan.

Once it was realised eradication wasn't possible, attention turned to research and development into how to manage the disease, breeding of more tolerant varieties; and how to continue to grow kiwifruit successfully. In all these, New Zealand has led the world, says Barry.