Bee Sweet Citrus has introduced a wash line to ensure fruit is free of the Asian citrus psyllid, which spread huanglongbing, aka HLB.
The citrus greening disease spread by the Asian citrus psyllid has devastated citrus crops in Florida and populations are increasing in Southern California.
“The only way to stop HLB from spreading is to stop the psyllid,” Keith Watkins, Bee Sweet Citrus vice president of farming, said in the release. “Even if an area already has a high psyllid population, preventative measures, such as washing fruit to remove the pest from the loads, is imperative to slow the spread of the disease.
The California Department for Food and Agriculture, along with the Citrus Pest and Disease Prevention Committee, set standards for growers to follow.
“Of those, growers either have to spray their fruit for the psyllid or clean their fruit of stems and leaves by running the fruit on a dry brush bed or across a wash line,” Watkins said in the release.
Bee Sweet Citrus’ wash line provides growers with a way to meet quarantine protocols by washing the fruit without damaging the fruit.
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