The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development declared the northeast region of the municipality of Tepic, Nayarit, as a low prevalence zone for fruit flies of the genus Anastrepha, which has a positive impact on around 1,152 hectares of mango, most of them cultivated by small and medium-sized producers.
He also endorsed the low prevalence sanitary status of five communities in Tepic and 14 in San Blas, because they have complied in the last two years with the phytosanitary preventive and control measures in orchards, and in those that regulate the movement of fruit hosts of fruit flies.
The Nayarit regions that were revalidated as low prevalence zones are 14 de Marzo, Cinco de Mayo, Crucero de San Blas, El Jicote and Salazares, in the municipality of Tepic, and Aután, Chacalilla, El Capomo, El Carleño, El Culebra, El Limón, Guadalupe Victoria, Isla del Conde, La Chiripa, La Goma, Laureles y Góngora, Madrigaleño, Pimientillo and Playa de Ramírez, in the municipality of San Blas.
In two agreements, published in the Official Gazette of the Federation (DOF), Agriculture stressed that the results of the sampling carried out by technicians from the National Service for Agri-Food Health, Safety and Quality (Senasica) indicate that the presence of the insect is not detectable, and therefore, based on the corresponding risk analysis, it does not cause economic impact to production.
The recognition is the result of the joint work between producers and the federal and state governments, who cooperate in the operation of the National Campaign against Fruit Flies, which aims to establish free zones and low prevalence of the pest.
It is important to mention that the recognitions raise the quality of the fruit, allowing farmers to market their products in new national and international markets and obtain better prices, which in turn promotes the development of their communities.
The declaration is valid for 24 months, during which time growers must continue to monitor and control the pest in order to prevent the fly population from increasing.
They must also apply measures to regulate the movement of fruit entering or transiting low prevalence zones.
Nayarit is the third largest mango producer in the country, behind only Sinaloa and Guerrero, with 334,915 tons per year, equivalent to 15.5 percent of the total national volume.