A new strain of Eastern Filbert Blight, responsible for the near-complete destruction of BC’s hazelnut industry following its introduction to the province in 2005, has reared its head in Oregon.
“We have collected spores from this [first diagnosed] orchard and are inoculating trees,” says by Nik Wiman, associate professor with Oregon State University (OSU), at a talk at the Lower Mainland Horticulture Conference in January. “After one season, we were able to see a new strain of EFB.”
More concerning is that newer tree varieties, resistant to the strain responsible for causing destruction in BC, are showing more signs of the new EFB infection than those that are not considered resistant.
Many BC orchards are planted with the same varieties (Wepster, McDonald, Yamhill) as the infected Oregon orchards.
“It was originally found on Jefferson but since then we’ve been doing some surveying and we’re finding it on a lot of the new varieties,” Wiman says. “We have several orchards [infected] now.”
First discovered in an orchard near Woodburn, Oregon, surveys indicate the new strain of EFB has spread. The search from the first orchard progressed downwind, where spores were suspected to be blowing, and found multiple orchards with the new EFB strain.
“This is hugely concerning,” Wiman says. “It’s a very fast-moving situation. Unfortunately, we’re going to have to go back to spraying. Hopefully this is not coming your way [to BC], but we’re really concerned right now.”
Part of the problem may be ornamental varieties like twisted hazel are attractive to consumers unaware of the virus and its ability to spread. He saw some ornamentals at a garden centre with visible EFB cankers.
“People don’t know, then wonder why their tree is dead in two years,” he says, adding these consumers don’t understand the harm their decorative tree can cause.
It isn’t just a case that signs of infection may not appear until 12 to 18 months after purchase; people simply don’t know the signs.
Breeders at Oregon State University have been working to develop trees resistant to the many strains of EFB that have been identified in the Eastern US.
“We’ve always known the eastern strain could be a problem,” he says. “We already knew that our resistance was not holding up in that environment of New Jersey.”
However, it’s unknown whether the EFB strain that came to the Pacific Northwest in the 1960s and later infected BC trees has mutated on its own or whether the new strain migrated from the Midwest or East Coast.
Varieties available in BC lack resistance to the new EFB strain. In 2019, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency considered allowing imports of hazelnut trees given the development of EFB-resistant varieties.
However, feedback received during the consultation process prompted CFIA to shelve the idea, although it told Country Life in BC it may revisit the proposal in the future. Currently, only plants raised from tissue culture are permitted entry.
Optimistic about market growth
In spite of risks, Don Hooge,
co-owner of hazelnut processor Fraser Valley Hazelnuts in Chilliwack, is optimistic about the future of the industry. Delivering a market outlook at the conference, he stated that yields are increasing now that BC’s new EFB-resistant orchards are entering full production.
“It’s up 35% to 40% over last year,” he says.
However, the 211,000 pounds of nuts Fraser Valley Hazelnuts received last year is a far cry from the million-plus pounds seen between 2006 and 2010.
The company is banking on the new strain of EFB not hitting BC the way the previous strain did. It is making big investments in infrastructure.
“We’ve got a new cracker that we’re going to be installing,” says Hooge. “We’ve got a new sheller; we need a new rocker. There’s a lot happening. We’ve got lots of capacity. We’re probably going to do some expanding as production [within the industry] increases.”
A bright spot Hooge notes is that everyone who has purchased nuts from Fraser Valley Hazelnuts has reordered, so he feels the biggest challenge is simply getting the word out. They have been connecting with bigger retailers to garner interest in locally produced hazelnuts.
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