SUGARCANE SMUT IN QUEENSLAND

SUGARCANE SMUT was found for the first time in Queensland on 8 June 2006 in the Farnsfield district near Childers. The first finding was in the variety Q205A. An emergency response to the incursion was coordinated by the Queensland Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries, BSES and CANEGROWERS in close cooperation with Isis and Bundaberg industry groups. The emergency response initially focused on eradication but, when it became obvious that eradication was not possible, the response focused on containment in the Bundaberg-Isis region. On 7 November 2006 smut was reported by a grower at Habana, north of Mackay, and on 14 December 2006 a grower in the Herbert River district reported smut on his farm. At this stage it was obvious that smut was established and widespread in Queensland but quarantine procedures were still maintained to slow the spread of the disease to regions where the disease had still not been found. Sugarcane smut can cause total crop loss in susceptible varieties, especially if infected stalks are used as planting material. The disease is primarily spread by wind blown spores that are released in large numbers from the characteristic whip-like structures and infected planting material. This paper reports on the incidence of sugarcane smut in Bundaberg–Isis, Central Queensland and the Herbert River regions and the future implications for the Australian sugar industry.