A possible solution for the dreaded Black Sigatoka in conventional and organic production of banana has been presented to the Department of Agriculture (DA).
The fungicide Timorex Gold is said to be the first registered organic fungicide for the control of Black Sigatoka in the country, pursuant to Republic Act 10068, otherwise known as the Organic Agriculture Act of 2010, which Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala authored when he was a representative to the House of Representatives for the Second District of Quezon province.
Black Sigatoka is regarded as the costliest and most damaging disease of commercial bananas. It damages the leaves, prematurely ripens the fruits and lowers the yield. Keynoting the launching of the product in Davao City, Alcala said the product’s developers assured him that the fungicide is a “rotational” tool for effective resistance management and is widely adopted for large-scale use in conventional and organic farming.
The product developers said it can be included in rotation programs to avoid cross-resistance during the season, provides highly effective disease control, reduces the overall chemical load and harmful residue levels in the plant and leaves no residues in the soil, water or air.
It is also harmless to beneficial insects and is safe for the user. During the event Prof. Moshe Reuveni, chief scientist of the company who developed the product, said the fungicide has demonstrated exceptional curative performance of the Mycosphaerella fijiensis in stages four and five, in the most intense disease pressure conditions.
The natural components of the fungicide offer multiple modes of action bringing with it a new concept and dimension for a highly effective and sustainable control of Black sigatoka in bananas, he said.It was gathered that the fungicide has been adopted for commercial use in key banana growing countries for conventional and organic plantations, such as Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, India, Korea, Mexico, Nicaragua and Philippines.