Huanglongbing and citrus canker are absent from Egypt
The NPPO of Egypt officially informed the EPPO Secretariat that despite the information stated in two recent papers (Tolba, 2017; Tolba and Soliman, 2015), huanglongbing (associated with ‘Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus’, ‘Ca. L. africanus’, ‘Ca. L. americanus’ – EPPO A1 List) and citrus canker (Xanthomonas citri subsp. citri - EPPO A1 List) do not occur in Egypt. Following the publication of the two papers, the Central Administration of Plant Quarantine have immediately conducted investigations with the Agricultural Research Centre (ARC) and the Plant Pathology Research Institute (PPRI). Citrus canker, as well as huanglongbing and its vectors, were not detected during survey programmes nor reported by growers. The NPPO of Egypt officially confirms that its territory is free from both citrus canker and huanglongbing.
Sources
NPPO of Egypt (2018-03).
Tolba IH (2017) Etiological and some epidemiological features of bacterial citrus canker in Egypt. Journal of Plant Protection and Pathology, Mansour University 8(6), 247-259.
Tolba IH, Soliman MA (2015) Citrus huanglongbing (greening disease) in Egypt: symptoms documentation and pathogen detection. American-Eurasian Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences 15(10), 2045-2058.