Less crops lost to disease: fighting Fusarium in California

The Fusarium fungus has long posed a challenge for onion, tomato, and cotton growers in California’s Central Valley.  Fusarium disease pressure has been increasing steadily due to accumulation of long-lived fungal survival structures in fields, which increases inoculum pressure in production fields.  At the same time, Fusarium is evolving resistance to fungicides previously used to control it, while other conventional options like fumigants are being phased out due to environmental concerns.  

As part of the Nestlé Responsible Sourcing Program aiming to make regenerative agriculture practices the standard in the food industry, ofi is demonstrating how combining different regenerative practices to build pathogen suppressive soil microbiomes can reduce Fusarium-caused losses.  Together, these synergistic approaches hold great promise for reducing losses to disease.  In addition, these efforts also are improving soil health, reducing environmental impact of production, and improving profitability for growers by reducing disease-associated risk.  

Researchers from ofi and New Mexico State University (NMSU) are collaborating on a multipronged approach to address the Fusarium caused losses. This approach combines ofi’s expertise in agronomy with NMSU’s expertise in pathogen research, healthy soils, and biocontrols. 

This research is being conducted in replicated field trials at the ofi research station and in commercial field trials.  These include several visits with cooperating farmers during the growing season to collaboratively discuss advances in Fusarium research, how they affect producers, and the approaches being evaluated to reduce losses to this threat.   

During these on-farm training sessions, growers and partners gather to explore practical prevention strategies and share observations from the field. Dr. Steve Hanson, Associate Professor in the Entomology, Plant Pathology and Weed Science, and Molecular Biology Program at NMSU, shared recent research results on the use of DNA sequencing techniques to assess the variety of Fusarium strains in fields (including those that may attack rotation crops), to evaluate the candidate biocontrol organisms to identify those that best suppress Fusarium-caused disease on onions, and analyze other sustainable treatments that can reduce the amount of Fusarium inoculum in soils.  

ofi is among the leaders unfolding this emerging paradigm, one that is being developed across many cropping systems as reliance on fungicides and related conventional approaches are fading. 

This project goes hand in hand with ofi’s "Choices for Change" sustainability strategy that addresses soil health through actions like improving soil fertility. Other tactics in the strategy include composting, using cover crops, and implementing erosion control. These practices contribute to ofi’s broader goal of a thriving and resilient food supply chain by fostering regenerative agriculture and enhancing ecosystem services.