Nelly Bassily | July 26, 2010
Wheat stem rust (also known as black rust) can destroy entire fields. Stem rust is caused by the fungus Puccinia graminis. The last major stem rust epidemic swept across North America’s wheat fields in the early 1950s. It destroyed up to 40 per cent of the crop. Rust-resistant wheat varieties were then developed. These varieties kept the disease at bay until it was discovered in Uganda in 1999. Slowly but surely, rust is spreading to neighbouring countries.
Wheat is one of the world’s staple food crops. Any threat to its continued production is taken seriously. Yet reports of the level of threat vary. Some news outlets report that starvation is imminent. Others state that it is just a matter of time before scientists release new varieties of wheat which are resistant to the new strains of rust.
The following UN Food and Agriculture Organization web pages track and report on stem rust: http://www.fao.org/agriculture/crops/rust/stem/en/ and
http://www.fao.org/agriculture/crops/core-themes/theme/pests/wrdgp/en/.
Basic information on, and photos of, stem rust can be found here: http://www.ars.usda.gov/Main/docs.htm?docid=9910.
This article in The Economist provides a map, illustrating where rust has been found, and which countries are thought to be in danger: http://www.economist.com/node/16481593.
Other reports and opinions can be found at:
–http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jul/19/stem-rust-uganda
–http://www.wired.com/magazine/2010/02/ff_ug99_fungus/.
Farm Radio International has produced a number of scripts on pests and diseases in crops. For example:
–Understanding Plant Diseases Package 72, Script 2, September 2004.
–Farmers Try to Beat a Virulent Disease Package 81, Script 6, August 2007.
If you broadcast to a region where farmers grow wheat, you could produce a story highlighting stem rust.
-Is stem rust a disease that farmers know how to deal with?
-Have they heard of Ug99, or reports of new strains of the disease?
-How do they currently manage diseases in wheat?
-Would they use fungicides to control rust? Are fungicides affordable?
-If not, what would they do if they discovered rust in their fields?
-How often do they check their wheat for signs of disease?