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CALABASAS, Calif. - A coalition of nursery, wine-grape, and citrus industry representatives met on Capitol Hill Feb. 28, 2001, to discuss Pierce’s Disease and the disease’s impact on California’s growing industries for wine, table and raisin grapes, as well as citrus, almonds and ornamentals, plants which serve as hosts for the disease’s carrier, the glassy-winged sharpshooter.
Representatives in the coalition included Stuart Sperber, president of Valley Crest Tree Co. and vice president and director of its parent company, Environmental Industries Inc.; William (Bill) Lyons Jr., secretary of California’s Department of Food and Agriculture (CFDA); Robert Falconer, director of government affairs, California Association of Nurserymen; E. G. (Bud) Summers, Ph.D., vice president, nursery division, Hines Nurseries Inc.; and Craig Regelbrugge, senior director of government relations, American Nursery and Landscape Association.
The group met with U. S. Secretary of Agriculture Ann Veneman, U. S. Senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein, and representatives and staff of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to discuss the disease’s impact and the progress of control programs.
“Pierce’s disease has cost growers lost revenues since the pest began destroying crops in California several years ago,” said Sperber. “The nursery industry, in particular, is supporting a program to work with researchers in the agricultural community to control this threat to a vital sector of the state’s economy.”
Pierce’s disease is a lethal disease caused by the Xylella fastidiosa bacterium. The bacterium kills plants by blocking their water transport tissue and is spread by flying insects known as sharpshooters. The insects thrive on a variety of plants, including citrus and wine and table grapes, and recently were found in some of the state’s largest agricultural areas. The disease has had a serious impact on viticulture and is emerging as a serious threat to California’s citrus growers and nurseries.
According to Secretary Lyons, the problem is one of California’s top priorities. “I am committed to move aggressively and effectively against this problem which threatens so many key crops in California,” he said. The state is working with county agricultural commissioners, the University of California, and the agricultural industry to develop a strategy for fighting this threat.
Sperber is interested in the statewide management program’s mandate to inspect nursery stock moving from infested counties and from other states to slow the spread of the pest and wants to educate growers about the seriousness of this pest problem. He and the nursery industry are advocating funding for the development of a long-term, sustainable program to allow continued shipping to uninfested counties. “Current methods for controlling the clearing and transporting of plant material is too expensive to maintain over the long term,” Sperber said. Also ranking high on the coalition’s list is an emphasis on field trials for bio-control measures that rely on beneficial insects, such as parasitic wasps, and other natural means to control the pests.
California Congressional leaders who met with the delegation included Congressmen Jerry Lewis, Ken Calvert, David Dreier, Cal Dooley, Robert Matsui, Bill Thomas, Henry Bonilla, Mike Thompson, Sam Farr, George Radanovich and Congresswomen Mary Bono.
Other industry leaders represented included: Joel Nelsen, president, California Citrus Mutual; Kam Quarles, director, federal government affairs, Sunkist Growers; Jean-Mari Peltier, president, California Citrus Quality Council; Ted Batkin, president, California Citrus Research Program; Dana Merrill, chairman of the board, California Association of Winegrape Growers; Karen Ross, president, California Association of Winegrape Growers; Robert Koch, senior vice president, Wine Institute; Bill Nelson, vice president, American Vintners Association; Edgar Downs, vice president of government affairs, Kendall-Jackson Wine Estates; Herb Schmidt, vice president of public affairs, Robert Mondavi Family of Wineries; and David Whitmer, agricultural commissioner, Napa County.