Due to the yellows virus, German beet growers are fighting a new disease that threatens the harvest.

In Germany, a problem with aphids has already arisen, infecting sugar beet plants with the yellowing virus. Currently, this new disease is spreading through insects at a regional level, according to Joanna Fry from Agrarheute.com, on AgroXXI.ru.

A new issue is being observed in southwest Germany - Sugar Beet Root Syndrome (SBR) on sugar beets.

Unlike healthy plants, SBR-infected beet leaves turn yellow, and new leaves become narrow, lanceolate, and asymmetrical.

As a result, infected sugar beet plants photosynthesize less, and the sugar content in the roots decreases by 20-40 percent.

SBR is already widespread in France and Switzerland. In Germany, only the Rhine Graben with its warm climate has been affected so far. However, this year, cicadas spreading SBR have moved north by 30 km.

According to experts from the NIKIZ project (a project on sustainable management of insects and diseases in growing sugar beets of the future), 43,900 hectares of sugar beets in southwest Germany are already infected with viruses. Experts estimate that around 20,000 hectares are also infected with the SBR bacterium.

The mild winter of 2020 in Germany turned out to be particularly favorable for aphids and cicadas, which had time to reproduce before sowing and infect sugar beets in large planting areas.

It is expected that the upcoming winter will be similarly mild. Therefore, sugar beet farmers should expect further problems.

German sugar beet producers are demanding political support from authorities regarding crop protection measures.

Other European countries have already expressed readiness to assist their sugar beet farmers. Emergency approval of neonicotinoids is planned in 12 countries.

The French government, upon discovering the problem with yellowing virus in beets and the sugar industry on the brink of extinction, presented an action plan to support local beet producers. It includes emergency approval of neonicotinoids, compensatory payments to farmers, and investments in research for alternative plant protection measures.