Economic damage has been reported on tomato plants and pepper. ToBRFV is of special concern because of its ability to overcome resistance of the Tm-2/Tm-22 (and Tm-1) resistance genes in tomato. The virus can infect up to 100% of the plants in a crop and cause 30-70% loss of tomato yield on plants (FDACS, 2019). Infection can also significantly reduce plant vigour thereby reducing the length of the production period during which tomato fruits are harvested (e.g. 8-10 fruit clusters usually harvested in Israel, instead of 24-30 clusters before the disease was established). Due to the symptoms, the fruits of infected plants lose market value or are unmarketable. Infections may also on occasion lead to premature death of the plant. However, the intensity of symptoms seems to vary according to varieties, management practices and climatic conditions.
In addition to direct crop losses (impact on yield and on the reduction in quality of fruit), the economic impact is due to the cost of applying hygiene measures, and to the loss of export market for seed and plantlets. In some cases, the grower may have to switch to non-host plants that may be less profitable. A higher impact is expected in intensive glasshouse production areas than in open fields. The impact for field crops is not well documented but is likely to be lower because there is usually less handling of the crop, and therefore the spread within the crop is less likely, and fruit quality is usually less important (e.g. fruits grown for processing).
Reference: EPPO (2024) Tobamovirus fructirugosum. EPPO datasheets on pests recommended for regulation. https://gd.eppo.int (accessed 2024-07-10)
