ToBRFV has arrived in Australia

[Whwoz]

Tomato brown rugose fruit virus has arrived in Australia. Currently only in South Australia, restricted to 3 commercial operations. The South Australian Department of Primary Industries is attempting to eradicate the virus through grip, rip and controlled disposal of plant material at the three farms plus a chemical decontamination program followed by testing. The virus came into the country via infected tomato seed.

[MissS]

It is usually the indoor commercial growers that are the first to have a disease and then since they sell the plants, they spread the disease like wildfire. Once it's in a commercial site, it becomes hard to control.

[Whwoz]

It is usually the indoor commercial growers that are the first to have a disease and then since they sell the plants, they spread the disease like wildfire. Once it's in a commercial site, it becomes hard to control.

Yes, and they go about saying that backyard growers who bring in seed in small lots are going to be the problem...............

[bower]

A few things about this virus: it is a hot weather creature. In the north and in commerce it really flourishes in a greenhouse setting, while in the warmest climates it digs in outdoors. But the spread is worst of all in a greenhouse setting, where the plants are frequently pruned and handled as part of the grow design.
A big issue with virus transmission is the production of F1 seed in greenhouses. Because of the associated reasons (plenty hot; lots of handling; surfaces where the virus is very persistent) this seriously raises the risk in commercial F1 seed.
Where commercial growers are the buyers of the F1 seed, they also have the risk of losing their ability to grow tomatoes in their own greenhouse facilities. So it's not just a crop loss. It's very messed up, and it's also very specific to the whole commercial grow and commercial seed production industry..
So you are absolutely right @Whwoz , the same risks do not apply to small seed lots of OP's and heirlooms grown and exchanged by gardeners. The serious risk is in the commercial setting.. and I'm astounded that a country with so many regs around seed import somehow had this slip through.

[HL2601]

I am so sorry to hear this! If getting seed to you was tough before..well now....ugh.

[Whwoz]

So you are absolutely right @Whwoz , the same risks do not apply to small seed lots of OP's and heirlooms grown and exchanged by gardeners. The serious risk is in the commercial setting.. and I'm astounded that a country with so many regs around seed import somehow had this slip through.

This seed lot was apparently tested and cleared for ToBRFV. But as is the case with any testing, you are really only testing just that part of the lot that you actually test as an indication that the whole lot is clear. In this case it wasn't unfortunately.

[Whwoz]

https://gd.eppo.int/taxon/ToBRFV/distribution

Link above shows distribution of this virus. Of interest to note is that it has been eradicated from California, a definite plus to my way of thinking.

[bower]

I'm surprised to see the density around Europe - but that can be deceptive. Every yellow dot could be a single facility affected in your country. I know from what I've read that the incidence in Canada was a single greenhouse in Ontario.
When the virus is associated with a greenhouse or a single farm, there doesn't seem to be a tendency to spread into the countryside.

One concern is that it can occur in peppers, and some of them can carry it without showing symptoms.
For awhile I was worrying about store bought peppers that might end up bringing virus to the compost, but maybe that concern is overblown as well, since it only seems to survive well in the field in much hotter countries.
Maybe a concern for South Aussie all the same.

[Seven Bends]

USDA APHIS regulatory change as of 6/17/24: APHIS is now allowing growers to market fruit grown at facilities where tomato brown rugose fruit virus is detected, rather than having to destroy the fruit. Strict controls on imports of pepper and tomato plant materials and seeds will continue, however. See here: https://www.aphis.usda.gov/news/agency- ... own-rugose

Seems to me this will slightly increase the risk of using seeds from store-bought produce in our home gardens, though overall the risk should still be fairly low from US and Canada-grown produce (due to few locations being infected). Maybe somewhat higher from Mexican produce (virus found in 20 Mexican states).

The table below the map posted by @Whwoz has some more specific information about each country if you click on the "view" buttons.