Evaluating tools for detection of Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. actinidae

The New Zealand kiwifruit industry is funding work to evaluate existing diagnostics for the biosecurity risk organism Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. Actinidae, a bacterium that is reported to cause summer cankers in kiwifruit plants in South Korea.

Cultures of this regulated organism have been transferred from the International Collection of Microbes from Plants (held at Landcare Research) to perform evaluations of the diagnostics at The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research’s approved physical containment facilities at Lincoln.

Any risks involved in this work are being mitigated by performing experiments under strict containment standards, which are enforced by MPI and the Environmental Risk Management Authority.

Validated tests will be used for the benefit of the industry by testing incoming material and providing a tool for rapid testing should we be faced with an incursion of this organism.