Overview

• The Schilf-Glasflügelzikade has spread from Baden-Württemberg into Rheinland-Pfalz, Bayern, Hessen, Niedersachsen and Sachsen-Anhalt, infecting sugar beets, potatoes and other vegetables
• Infested crops develop a rubbery consistency that renders beets and tubers unfit for processing or sale
• Yield losses have reached up to 25 percent in sugar beets and 70 percent in potatoes in affected regions
• Approximately 75,000 hectares of sugar beet and 65,000 hectares of potato fields now lie within zones of vector presence
• Farmers and industry groups are pressing for regular approval of targeted pesticides and accelerated research into disease-resistant crop varieties