Coffee leaf rust may be able to suppress KONA coffee EPA emergency approval of fungicides

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It has been at least 150 years since coffee leaf rust was discovered, and eight months have passed since it was first detected in Maui, Hawaii, in October 2020. Shortly after that, signs of the disease were also found on the big island of Hawaii in November 2020. The Big Island of Hawaii grows a lot of commercial coffee, including Kona coffee.

Coffee leaf rust spread across the American continent around 2012 and quickly destroyed large tracts of crops. between 2012 and 2017 alone, coffee leaf rust cost coffee growers across Latin America about $3 billion.

Today, the state of Hawaii is in jeopardy, and such losses seem to be looming in Hawaii. According to the Hawaiian Coffee Association, the market value of raw coffee beans is about $102 million in 2019-2020 alone, while the market value of ripe coffee beans is about $148 million.

The Hawaiian Department of Agriculture (HDOA) submitted an application for exemption from the use of chemical antimicrobial agents to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in March 2021. On May 20, 2021, local time in the United States, the United States Environmental Protection Agency urgently approved the Hawaiian Department of Agriculture's application.

The chemical antimicrobial agent approved this time is a drug called Priaxor Xemium, which is sold by a German multinational chemical company, and its active ingredient is fluazolamide. Although the Hawaiian Department of Agriculture says the antibacterial agent is commonly used in the production of a variety of leafy vegetables, strawberries, tomatoes, soybeans, wheat and other crops. The United States Environmental Protection Agency has never approved the use of the fungicide on coffee crops before.

Unless antimicrobial agents urgently approved by the US Environmental Protection Agency are granted the right to be used permanently on coffee crops, Hawaiian coffee growers can only be allowed to use them within a year.

According to the emergency exemption, coffee growers must:

Notify the state pesticide department at least 7 days before using Priaxor Xemium.

Wear personal protective equipment as required by the label.

Follow all instructions on the container label and section 18 label provided by the dealer.

Report all uses / applications to the pesticide department within 10 days after use.

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