Kiwifruit disease PSA is on the move, with MAF Biosecurity confirming the disease has spread outside the Te Puke area.

Two orchards in the Hawke’s Bay have returned positive tests, as well as one each in the eastern Bay of Plenty towns of Edgecumbe and Whakatane, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 25.

MAF Biosecurity Response Manager David Yard says the widening scope of PSA changes the response.

“We are not in a catch up situation here, it’s not like MAF is slow to act and the disease has overtaken us, and we’ve found out the disease has spread somewhere else.

"We believe it was already here, and that’s why we need the assistance of the growers, it may already be established in New Zealand, that’s what we need to establish fairly quickly."

Meanwhile MAF Biosecurity officials have impounded stocks of imported pollen for fears of cross-contamination.

Some imported product is used during kiwifruit pollination, but isn’t tested for PSA as it’s not thought pollen can transmit the disease.

David Yard says there are health standards for imported pollen, and the seizure is just a precaution.

"Currently there is no scientific literature to support the argument that PSA bacteria can be carried in pollen.

"So understandably, there weren’t any tests for PSA pollen specified in the import health standard.

"So I think people who say 'Well why didn’t you test for it at that time?' Well I really think it is a moving feast.

"If you don’t know about it, you don’t know what to test for – until someone finds it, and then we will have to update the imported health standard.”

Forest & Bird is calling on MAF to eradicate wild kiwifruit vines from the Bay of Plenty to contain PSA.

Former Forest & Bird National President Dr Peter Maddison says the wild vines could harbour PSA bacteria.

"If you can find the source stem and lop it off, and treat it, you will get the whole plant

"It may be extensive, and cover a lot of ground, but there’s only one stem."

"With a team of people you could kill it quite easily.”

Dr Maddison says the risk is still serious despite the wilding kiwifruit being of the green variety, while all confirmed PSA cases have been found in gold.

“It’s still not clear until they find the strain, whether it can get into the green kiwifruit, we’ve been waiting for that information which has taken a long time now.

"No science has been put out unfortunately, so we just have to go on what we know."