Future challenges in sugar beet crop protection:

challenges and opportunities!

Dr Mark Stevens

Lead scientist BBRO

British Society of Sugar

Technologists 7th April 2016

British Beet Research Organisation

• Non-profit making company set up jointly by British Sugar plc (BS) and the National Farmers' Union (NFU).

• The objective of the BBRO is to commission and implement research and technology transfer to increase the competitiveness and profitability of the UK beet sugar industry in a sustainable and environmentally acceptable manner.

Ensuring future UK sugar beet yields

Yield progression

Harvest & storage

Yield stability

Weather/climate

EU policy changes to pesticides

Ensuring high yielding UK varieties

rotation

Virus yellows Powdery mildew rhizomania

Sugar beet pests & diseases

Developing strategies against sugar beet

pathogens of key importance to the UK

Key factors influencing future crop protection:

• Impact of European regulation on pesticides (more with less?)

• Pathogen adaptation or resistance

• New disease threats

• Implications of climate change

• Lack of development of crop protection chemicals (especially for sugar beet e.g. aphid control)

• What do we want in future resistant varieties in UK?

• Exploitation and acceptance of resistant varieties using all available technology

• Think rotation - not just this year’s crop!

Old enemies

• Aphids/virus yellows

• Foliar diseases

• Nematodes

• Rhizomania

New threats: Stemphylium

ED impact assessments for beet

• BBRO provided impact assessments of potential plant protection product losses:

BBRO Crop Protection programme

Crop stability

Viruses

Nematodes

Root Rots

Foliar Diseases

Aerial view of symptoms • At least 3 viruses involved. • Yield loss = up to 49% • Worldwide distribution. • No commercially resistant varieties. • In 2015, 99% of UK crop protected

with neonicotinoid seed treatments

• Preventing yield losses up to £24M in high risk years.

Virus Yellows

Virus Yellows remains a threat to the EU:

• Resistance (MACE, kdr, neonicotinoid) But also: • Narrow choice of approved products for beet • Lack of new/novel active ingredients • Changing (enforced) insecticide use in other arable crops • Climate change – mild winters? • Political pressures

Neonicotinoids and on-going political pressures

Virus Transmission

Myzus persicae

Prevalence of yellowing viruses across

Europe

Poleroviruses

closterovirus

Current Decision Support

•Removal of sources of infection General farm hygiene

Seed treatments √ Risk maps

•Chemicals applied as: Granules at drilling × Risk maps +Forecast

Post-emergence × Forecasts + Spray

sprays Warning Scheme

Provisos:

Conserve aphid predators

Beware resistant aphids

Options for control

Modelling virus yellows in sugar beet

Qi, A., Dewar, A.M. and Harrington, R. (2004) Pest Management Science 60, 727-732

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dysp

Winter temperature

Growth stage (planting date)

Seed treatment

*source: British Sugar

Virus Yellows Forecast for 2015

Factory

Area Option

Virus yellows (%) on Sowing Dates

of Intended use

of insecticide

treated seed*

Mean

Temperature

(Jan/Feb) 15 March 30 March 15 April

Bury

No Pest

Control 9.3 12.7 19.3 -

4.1ºC + Pest

Control 0.4 0.5 0.6 99.6%

Cantley

No Pest

Control 21.8 29.4 42.2 -

4.9ºC + Pest

Control 0.9 1.0 1.2 99.5%

Wissington

No Pest

Control 9.3 12.7 19.3 -

4.1ºC + Pest

Control 0.4 0.5 0.6 98.8%

Newark

No Pest

Control 22.5 32.1 48.2 -

4.7ºC + Pest

Control 0.6 0.6 0.8 99.5%

Year

1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015

0

20

40

60

80

100Model estimates with PM

Model estimates without PM

Incidence of virus yellows in sugar beet

>50% crop protected by neonicotinoid seed treatments

BBRO Fungicide Trial: Lincolnshire

New BBRO projects:

Working in partnership with BBRO team to study:

Source of infection/re-infection by rust & mildew

(Matthew Clark et al. TGAC)

The Genome Analysis Centre

21

Ash Dieback disease

Prof. Allan Downie

Nornex consortium

Aims

• Quantify the diversity within UK mildew and rust populations

• Determine the source of infection via agricultural and wild samples

• Identify the effects of fungicidal application on pathogen genetic diversity.

B. v. maritima

B. vulgaris

Rust

Mixed

Mildew

• 44 Wild samples

– Sampled along 582km coastline

– Hessle foreshore to Southend-on-Sea

• 60 Agricultural samples

– Covering 20,000km2

– Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire Norfolk, Suffolk & Essex

Alistair Wright

Debbie Sparkes

PhD studentship: Understanding

plant/BCN interactions

Beet cyst nematode: severe infection

6% of beet land identified with BCN from recent BBRO surveys

1. Water uptake limitations

5 cm X 15 cm 20 cm X 150 cm

Exploiting latest technologies

1. Water uptake limitations Real-time visualisation of roots (& BCN)

Courtesy: Dr Jenny Bussell

New initiatives

BBRO levy:

leveraging to deliver greater opportunities and yield potential post

2017

InnovateUK (TSB) Call

UK Innovate (TSB) opportunities

Leveraging BBRO R&D levy to maximise and facilitate new/high priority project areas to protect the UK crop and its yield potential:

• Collaborations between BBRO, Institutes, Universities and Industry

• Harnessing skills within biological sciences, engineering and telecommunications communities.

TSB Project 1

SporeID (Innovative disease monitoring and diagnostics for improved efficiency of crop production)

• Three Year project • BBRO project lead • Total cost: £1.41M

IDSPORE

A novel pre-breeding strategy to reduce dependence on insecticides for virus yellows control in sugar beet

• Five Year project • BBRO project lead • Total cost: £1.14M

TSB Project 2

Project Aim: To develop host protection against the ‘virus yellows complex’ in sugar beet

TSB Project 2

• To identify and introgress ‘broad spectrum’ resistance of the ‘virus yellows’ complex into elite sugar beet material for future breeding programmes

• To develop sugar beet hybrids tolerant to virus yellows and determine yield benefit for variety development

Virus Yellows trial 2015

Ch I, Ch II, Ch III, Ch IV, Ch VI QTL

Crop protection research focus:

• Neonicotinoids (what next if lost?)

• Exploitation of tolerant/resistant varieties

• Maximising return from fungicides (impact of EU restrictions?)

• Novel weed control

• Surveillance and modelling risks of new or existing pests and diseases

December 2015 temperature equivalent to April or May!!

Conclusions

• Arable sector to face significant challenges with potential PPP restrictions

• Will need all possible control options/new technologies for limiting impact of pests, diseases and weeds in sugar beet

• Sugar beet has great record of exploiting tools and technologies to promote yield

• New BBRO projects to support further yield protection and enhancement.

Area Manager Update Mark Stevens 4/6/2014

What are the challenges for the future?

Thank You for your attention