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Winter
2017
Grains
West
34
“I’ve always emphasized to producers
and industry that Fusarium is unlike any
other disease. Not only can it cause yield
and grade reductions, but what really sets
F. graminearum
apart are the mycotoxins
it produces, which are harmful to both
animals and humans. Whether producers
are focusing on feed or food, the
damage to end-use marketability can be
devastating,” he said.
That view is shared by Harding, who
added that, “while yield loss is a concern,
the greatest impact is downgrading.”
This is borne out by a recent economic
impact study conducted by the Alberta
government, which examined the
potential effects of Fusarium infection in
a field of Canada Western Red Spring
(CWRS).
“At just 0.4 per cent disease
prevalence, the total revenue loss from
reduced yield and a class downgrade
fromNo. 1 to No. 2 is about $52 per
acre,” said Harding. “When the wheat
is downgraded further to No. 3 or feed
wheat, the economic impact increases
significantly to $62 and $65 per acre,
respectively.”
Over the last five years, depending
on the value of No. 1 wheat in a given
year, that translated to losses in the
millions of dollars for Alberta farmers.
For example, in 2012, a large amount of
CWRS production—more than 400,000
tonnes—was downgraded fromNo. 1
to No. 2, with a small amount further
downgraded to No. 3. Since the price
discount is fairly low, the total provincial
cost was a relatively modest $3 million.
That cost was much higher in 2010,
when a smaller amount of production
was downgraded, but the grade drop
was more severe. This time, all the
downgraded grain dropped to No. 3
or feed wheat at a total cost of about
$8.7 million, according to the economic
impact study.
However you crunch the numbers,
that’s a lot of money, and CWRS is just
one of many crops affected by Fusarium.
Few would argue that it’s a disease
unworthy of special attention, but what
exactly does that entail?
Management training
The answer came in 2002 when,
after an extensive public consultation
process, Alberta Agriculture and Forestry
released the first comprehensive Alberta
Fusarium graminearum
Management
Plan. The plan was designed to limit the
introduction, escalation, spread and
economic impact of
F. graminearum
in
Alberta.
It included input from the province’s
Fusarium Action Committee, which is
composed of several industry groups,
including Alberta Barley and the Alberta
Seed Growers. The committee’s
mandate is to represent the interests
and views of Alberta’s agricultural
industry regarding the management
of
F. graminearum
; recommend
management strategies; and educate
Alberta’s crop and livestock industries
about the disease and the threat it poses
to producers, processors and other
stakeholders.
“We cannot take a wait-and-see
approach to management of this
disease,” said Harding. “By the time
symptoms appear, it is too late to apply
management tools other than trying
to remove Fusarium-damaged kernels
MAP READING:
Fusarium head blight risk maps, currently available in Saskatchewan and Manitoba,
identify areas where weather conditions are favourable for
Fusarium graminearum
to develop.