Wheat Rust: The Polio of Farming and Agriculture
Wheat Rust: The Polio of Farming and Agriculture
Wheat crops all over the world are facing serious threat from a fungal disease, according to leading scientists. This disease is known as wheat rust. It is one of the most devastating diseases to affect agriculture. It is even being referred to as the polio of agriculture. This dangerous fatal disease is spreading to major regions of the world including Africa, Central Asia, South Asia, Europe and the Middle East. This has adversely impacted one of the world’s most important crops. Wheat is the second most important crop following rice. Any further spread of this fungal disease could have grave consequences for food security in the world.
This fungal disease was observed in form of a major epidemic which swept across the wheat belt in North America during the fifties. This destroyed nearly 40% of wheat crop in this country at that time. Since this fatal outbreak of wheat rust, considerable amount of funds have been spent on developing varieties of wheat that are resistant to rust. Since a mutation of this fungal infection swept through wheat crops in Uganda towards the end of the 1990s, there has been widespread concern at the possible mutations of wheat rust and the impact this could have on agricultural productivity.
British scientists have estimated that nearly 90 percent of African wheat varieties are now under threat of developing wheat rust. This can have serious consequences for this nation. Only last year, Germany experienced an outbreak of stem rust for the first time in 50 years. This was caused by unusual rise in temperatures. The cold spring and early summer spurred the late development of wheat crop which then exposed it to this fungal infection.
In November 2013, Ethiopia also faced huge agricultural losses due to this fungal infection. Farmers lost half of their wheat crop on an average. Some farmers lost up to 70% of their crops in this outbreak. Research is currently being conducted to identify the possible different strains of this fungal disease and how to contain it. Wheat rust can cause a huge amount of destruction in short spans of time. This is the reason behind its devastating impact.
This fungus reproduces through millions of spores which are capable of infesting and destroying crops. These spores are airborne. This is one of the most important challenges facing agricultural scientists now. Along with drought, wheat rust is a big threat to agricultural productivity. Wheat is an important cereal in many parts of the world including India. Wind borne fungal spores catch the crops very fast and much needs to be accomplished in terms of scientific solutions rather than relying on methods that do not work.
Countries across the world need to respond to this food security concern quickly if correct steps have to be taken to tackle the menace. Scientists have advocated that new seed varieties need to be produced. The United Nations is currently approaching the US and Europe to tackle the problem. Developing countries lack the infrastructure to explore this problem more deeply. Developed countries are also trying to come up with solutions that can be implemented with ease in developing nations. Parts of the developing world such as Africa are at a major risk because of wheat rust.
British scientists are focusing on combating the disease by cloning new sources of resistance from crops such as barley and plants such as wild grass. The efforts are concentrating on protecting the wheat through spurring its resistance rather than looking for fungicides to tackle the disease. Sophisticated models are being developed to predict the possible impact of wheat rust on the world in coming years. The likely spread of this fungal epidemic is also being monitored.
Scientists are indicating that climate change is causing mutations of wheat rust to develop. Two forms of this fungus have been associated with adaptation to warmer conditions. This has increased the vulnerability of many regions in North Africa and South Asia to this disease. Earlier, these areas were not prone to wheat rust. Apart from losses in productivity, fall in the production of wheat can impact industries across the world in an adverse way too. Wheat is a raw material for the food and beverage industry. Companies need to do the math and realise that sustainable development can yield profits.
