FED:Fruit fly outbreak could cost millions

AAP General News (Australia)
04-12-2011
FED:Fruit fly outbreak could cost millions

SYDNEY, April 12 AAP - One of the country's worst outbreaks of fruit fly could cost
the Australian citrus industry millions of dollars, experts say.

Humid conditions throughout the summer have led to the worst outbreak of fruit fly
ever seen in parts of the country, including southern NSW, Queensland and Victoria, according
to the Tri-State Fruit Fly Committee.

Tasmania has seen its first ever outbreak, while fruit flies have also been discovered
in Western Australia, committee spokesman Dominic Testoni said on Tuesday.

"It's starting to spread far and wide," he said.

"It's a fairly serious issue. The weather has been fairly unkind this year, it's been
good that it's raining but the high humidity has created ideal breeding condition for
the flies."

The outbreak could cost the citrus industry alone millions of dollars in lost exports,
Mr Testoni said.

"That's just the citrus industry, it quickly adds up. If it was to cross into other
commodity groups, as it has done before, a lot of the fruit may become unsaleable.

"Talking numbers of flies, this is the worst it's ever been."

Farming communities have joined with state primary industry departments to tackle the outbreak.

"We're doing everything we can to get the numbers down to a normal level," Mr Testoni said.

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KEYWORD: FRUITFLY

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