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Soil Borne Pathogen Could Cause Pumpkin Shortage in CNY A Soil Borne Pathogen Could Cause CNY Pumpkin Shortages

Phytophthora, which thrives in wet weather, is spreading across pumpkin fields

By Lucy Cardon

Reporter: There are certain things that mean Autumn for many Americans… fallen leaves, Halloween decorations, and pumpkins – via pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie, and pumpkin spice everything.
Now, supermarket shelves could find themselves cleared of canned pumpkin – thanks to a strain of fungus that goes back over twenty years

Mohammad Babadoost:That was an epidemic. That disease, what is called Phytophthora Blight, was an epidemic. We used to go from field to field and 100% loss, 80% loss, more than 60% loss. We had to work very hard to bring it under control. Indeed, we did.

Reporter: About 90 percent of production pumpkins – those used in pumpkin-based foods – are grown in Illinois. They’re then shipped across the country to stores like Wegmans. But this year, crop scientist Mohammed Babadoost noticed a problem.

Babadoost: Suddenly I realized, in my research plots, there is Phytophthora started much earlier in the season. I said, my goodness, this is going to be devastating.

Reporter: Phytophthora, which is aided by warm, wet weather, travels through soil, quickly infecting entire fields of pumpkins. Shelves aren’t full, but you can still buy pumpkin in the stores. Still, that could change depending on losses in the coming weeks of harvest.

Babadoost: If I want canned pumpkin to make sure that I do have enough for whatever I need, probably I wouldn’t wait until the last minute. I should go buy as soon as possible.

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) — Phytophthora, a soil-borne pathogen that has swept through pumpkin fields in Illinois, may leave CNY with a shortage of canned pumpkin in the coming weeks. The fungus has made an appearance after several quiet years, thriving in the warm, wet conditions that the state has seen in 2021.

According to Mohammad Babadoost, a crop scientist and professor at the University of Illinois, the problem goes back over two decades.

“About twenty years ago, we had a devastating disease called Phytophthora… this is very similar. That was an epidemic, that disease – what is called Phytophthora Blight – was an epidemic. It used to go from field to field, and hundred percent losses, eighty percent losses, more than sixty percent loss.”

With around 90% of America’s processing pumpkins – those used in food products – grown in Illinois, the fungus is capable of far-reaching effects. It spreads quickly through soil and is exacerbated by human contact, which can spread the pathogen from pumpkin to pumpkin. While traditional pumpkins – along with potatoes, tomatoes, and cucurbits like watermelons – are at risk, processing pumpkins seem to be particularly susceptible to infection.

“[We’ve] never been able to control 100%,” said Babadoost. “One of the reasons is, we do not have resistant varieties. All the varieties we have are susceptible.” He detected the rapid spread earlier this year, noting an increase in cases in one of his research plots. Since then, he’s worked with farmers on mitigation efforts, hoping to curb transmission.

“I released the news to the growers, be careful, make sure to follow all the recommendations. The industry and myself worked very hard,” Babadoost said. With efforts in place, pumpkin losses haven’t reached nearly the level that Babadoost worried they might. “We have to be very careful, the season is not completely over and there could be more losses. If I want canned pumpkin to make sure that I do have enough for whatever I need, probably I wouldn’t wait until the last minute.”

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