Peru's papaya sector is trying out a Taiwanese fruit variety to better understand the ringspot virus, Agraria.pe reported. The Known-you N°1 variety will undergo test planting in the Ucayali region, where an estimated 300 out of 1,000 total hectares are infected with the virus.

The Ucayali Agriculture Directorate's Paolo Roberto Gálvez Castillo said a plot has already been established to test ringspot resistance. He said this is the only current variety under analysis.

"The idea behind the imported genetic material is for it to adapt to our region," he told Agraria.pe.

Currently about half of plantations in the region are of the Ucayalina variety, a hybrid developed from Gold Maradol. Smaller Known-you N°1 plantations do exist as well along the Iparia river.

With the onset of the virus, Gálvez Castillo said there has been a negative impact on the Amazon's ecosystem.

Producers have been forced to relocate crops, a minor cause of deforestation, he told the Peruvian news source.

"They are taking advantage of the land to expand the cultivation area and an effect is deforestation," he said.

www.freshfruitportal.com