The green corn leafhopper (\u00a0<\/span>Dalbulus maidis<\/span><\/em>\u00a0The disease, considered the main pest of the crop, has caused billions of dollars in losses to Brazilian production. A new study has quantified the economic impact of the diseases that cause it.\u00a0<\/span>corn dwarfism<\/span>\u00a0In Brazil, between 2020 and 2024, Brazil lost an average of 22.7% of its corn production due to these diseases, whose pathogens are transmitted by the insect vector, resulting in annual losses of approximately US$$ 6.5 billion.<\/span><\/p>\n Over the four agricultural years covered by the study, accumulated financial losses reached US$25.8 billion, as approximately 2 billion 60-kilogram bags were not produced.<\/span><\/p>\n The results were obtained from the analysis of data from the National Supply Company (<\/span>Conab<\/span>) which cover historical series on productivity, grain production and area planted with corn since 1976, and estimated the economic losses associated with crop damage in the main corn-producing regions of Brazil.<\/span><\/p>\n The results were published in the international journal.\u00a0<\/span>Crop Protection<\/span>\u00a0They detail how diseases that cause dwarfism in corn and the green leafhopper have evolved from a minor problem to the biggest challenge faced by corn production in Brazil in recent decades. The study was conducted by\u00a0<\/span>Embrapa Cerrados<\/span>\u00a0(DF), by the Agricultural Research and Rural Extension Company of Santa Catarina (\u00a0<\/span>Epagri)<\/span> and by the Brazilian Confederation of Agriculture and Livestock (<\/span>CNA<\/span>).<\/span><\/p>\n In addition to statistical data, the researchers used information collected by the project.\u00a0<\/span>Future Field<\/span><\/a>\u00a0, an initiative of the CNA and the National Rural Learning Service (\u00a0<\/span>SENAR<\/span><\/a>\u00a0The surveys were conducted in 34 municipalities representing the main producing regions of Brazil, with the participation of farmers and specialists. Based on technical consensus, they identified and estimated the losses associated with the green leafhopper and the dwarfism symptom complex in each municipality and crop season.<\/span><\/p>\n In the first crop analyzed (2020\/2021), the impact was greater \u2013 a production loss of 28.9%. In the 2023\/2024 crop, the index fell by 16.7%. Meanwhile, expenses with insecticides for leafhopper control increased by 19% in these four crops, exceeding nine dollars per hectare, which significantly increased production costs for farmers.<\/span><\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.embrapa.br\/documents\/10180\/106428292\/260407_EnfezamentosCigarrinha_infogr%C3%A1fico.jpg\/efa4fbf7-6da7-0711-ed1a-e415509160dd?t=1775162760963\")
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An overview of the losses<\/span><\/h4>\n
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