The bacteria crippling New Zealand's kiwifruit industry looks to have spread to a Coromandel orchard.
Industry biosecurity agency Kiwifruit Vine Health (KVH) reports that they have received a provisional Psa-V result on four Gold9 vines in Whenuakite.
This is the first reported case of the bacteria in the Coromandel region.
KVH says that verification of the bacteria is due tomorrow, and a "controlled area" has been established within a 10 kilometre radius of the infected orchard.
All 18 growers in the nearby region have been notified of the situation.
However, KVH Chief Executive, Barry O'Neil, said that evidence of Psa-V spreading to the Coromandel region is not completely unexpected.
"As the sap starts to flow in early spring, Psa-V symptoms become more obvious. We also received the first Psa-V positive results from orchards in the Waikato region only two weeks ago.
"The Coromandel has been identified as a high-risk region for a Psa-V incursion, given its close proximity to Psa-V infected areas in the Bay of Plenty, said O'Neill.
The primary Psa-V infection occurs through the leaves of the vine, and is facilitated by frost, high winds and rain which damage the plant surface. In the first stage of the infection Psa-V presents itself as dark leaf spots.
Since identifying signs of the virus, the vines in the Psa-V affected orchard have been removed and disposed of.
KVH is working with growers to contain the spread of the disease. They will also conduct an investigation to understand how the infection arrived in the Coromandel.
The discovery comes only week after the bacteria was found in an orchard in Te Awamutu.
It is estimated Psa will cost the lucrative kiwifruit export industry more than $300 million in the next five years.