SwissDeCode, Mars Wrigley develop on-site test for Cocoa Swollen Shoot Disease
Test detects CSSD in asymptomatic trees in less than an hour.
Swiss agrifood testing company SwissDeCode, in collaboration with Mars Wrigley, has created an on-site test that is designed to detect Cocoa Swollen Shoot Disease (CSSD) in asymptomatic trees in less than 60 minutes.
Cocoa Swollen Shoot Disease is caused by plant viruses and transmitted by mealybugs from infected to healthy cocoa trees. The region of West Africa is particularly affected, especially Ghana and Ivory Coast, where over 780,000 hectares of cocoa trees are believed to be infected.