Locust Plague Destroying Citrus Crops
 

Locust Plague Affects Citrus Crops

17 March 2013
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Santo Domingo.- A locust plague has infected citrus plantations with the disease known as Huanglongbing (HLB), generating losses and damages of hundreds of millions of pesos. .

Nearly 500 citrus growers from Hato Mayor and El Seibo, with some 300,000 cultivated areas, have been battling the plague for the past five years.

The presence of the locusts are more tangible in the orange fields of Citrus East Consortium companies, Barceló and Agro company BHS located in the Juan Jiménez section in the agricultural town of El Valle, where hundreds of thousands of plants have been eliminated because they were contaminated by the disease.

According to Ricardo Barcelo, from the Citrus East Consortium, producers have tried to eliminate the insect by spraying pesticides by land and air, but this doubles production costs rendering the orange production unprofitable both for export and the domestic markets.

This plaque is already spreading to other countries.


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