"Biblical Plague"

Pest Runs Rampant: Winemakers Declare a State of Emergency

The beauty of our local vineyards is deceptive. The battle against the grapevine cicada is growing ever tougher, and the damage is now enormous.(Bild: Allacher, AGES/Zeisner, Charlotte Titz)

The American grapevine leafhopper is already wreaking havoc in three federal states, and the damage has now become enormous. Local winemakers are now calling for a national crisis task force; otherwise, a disastrous outcome looms…

A sense of alarm among local winemakers: At the “Special Committee” of the Austrian Winegrowers’ Association, the focus is currently on an inconspicuous but highly dangerous enemy—the American grapevine leafhopper.

The insect is currently spreading rapidly and has already caused massive damage, especially in the regions bordering Slovenia, the Czech Republic, and Hungary.

The pest isn’t particularly large, but it is very dangerous.(Bild: AGES/Strauß)

As reported, the situation is particularly dire in Burgenland and Styria, where the vine leafhopper transmits the dreaded golden yellow leaf disease (flavescence dorée).

Entire vineyards are affected, and grapevines must be uprooted. One affected farmer said it already resembles a plague of biblical proportions. The pest burden is also rising in Lower Austria’s Weinviertel region.

We really can’t afford to waste any more time. Without a national crisis task force and appropriate measures, viticulture will be doomed.

Winzerchef Johannes Schmuckenschlager

Bild: Imre Antal

A robust strategy is still lacking!
Currently, efforts to combat the pest are being organized at the state level—but according to Johannes Schmuckenschlager (ÖVP), president of the Austrian Winegrowers’ Association, that is far from sufficient: “We urgently need a national crisis task force,” Schmuckenschlager demanded in an interview with the “Krone.”

The goal is a robust strategy—one that extends beyond national borders. So far, there has been a lack of reliable information on how neighboring countries are combating the spread of the pest.

One measure now under discussion is the complete uprooting and abandonment of heavily infested vineyards, likely in exchange for appropriate compensation. The fact is, this is the greatest threat to domestic viticulture since the glycol scandal and phylloxera!