U of I researchers target mounting fungal threat to Idaho potato industry

University of Idaho Extension soil sample testing reveals that three-quarters of Idaho potato fields are now infected with some level of the pathogen Spongospora, which can cause the fungal disease powdery scab. Spongospora is also a host that transmits the potato mop-top virus (PMTV), though not all of the infested soils in Idaho have yet reached a threshold to where the diseases will occur. The two diseases are increasingly culpable for fresh potato packing facilities and international trade partners rejecting U.S. potatoes, as well as processors docking prices paid to growers.