The San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors has unanimously adopted a resolution to ratify and continue a proclamation of local emergency for the migration of beet leafhoppers in the county and for the presence of the beet curly top virus on tomato crops.
With San Joaquin County growing about 21,000 acres of tomatoes every year, insects such as the beet leafhopper suck the juice of the plants and transmit diseases like the beet curly top virus.
Once plants such as tomatoes are contaminated with the virus, they die off and can’t produce anymore.
Last month, multiple pest control advisors who were walking in the tomato fields in the county detected virus-infected tomatoes on Roberts Island, Union Island and Fabian Tract.
Meeting documents stated that fresh market and processing tomatoes are grown annually in California on approximately 235,000 acres, including 21,673 acres in 2023 in San Joaquin County, at an annual production cost of $5,248 per acre representing approximately $114 million of annual revenue or harvesting value.
County Agricultural Commissioner Sealer of Weights & Measures Kamal Bagri said the virus and insect has been in the county for decades and has affected tomato crops typically.
However, this year declaring a local emergency was needed because new regulations passed in the state have restricted and limited certain uses of neonicotinoids to control the issue.
Neonicotinoids are active substances that are used in plant protection products to help control insects that cause harm.
“Growers now just don’t have the tools to combat the virus due to recently new regulations,” Bagri said.
Similar local proclamations have passed since April to combat the same problem with the virus and bugs in other surrounding counties.
Victoria Franco is a reporter based in Stockton covering San Joaquin County for Bay City News Foundation and its nonprofit news site Local News Matters. She is a Report for America corps member.
