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The U.S. government first became interested in Fusarium in the 1960s after the fungus was found to be the causative factor of a blight that destroyed coca populations in Hawaii. As a response to growing cocaine use in the U.S., government agencies along with other researchers began to develop methods of mass production and field application of Fusarium. Efforts were also made to develop new strains and isolate phytotoxins for use against other narcotic plants. In the early 90s, a Fusarium epidemic spread through coca fields of the Upper Huallaga Valley of Peru. In 1993, during a visit by a U.S. sponsored human rights delegation to the Huallaga valley, delegates were assailed with numerous accounts of US DEA planes spraying the fungus over coca fields. Although it is difficult to prove U.S. involvement with any certainty, the effects of the Fusarium outbreaks in Peru are clear. As the disease spread through the valley, the U.S. embassy reported that Fusarium was not specific to coca and was destroying a wide range of other plant species including food crops. Moreover, after the initial onslaught of the epidemic, the fungus appeared to have drastic long-term effects on the soil, making it difficult to replant crops. As a result, 3,000 peasant families were forced to find other methods of subsistence. Many farmers were forced to move deeper into the forest to secure uncontaminated land for crops. In 1999, Jim McDonough, the new Director of Florida's Office of Drug Control, lobbied for use of a strain of Fusarium to combat illegal marijuana cultivations. The idea was rescinded due to various health and environmental concerns raised by the press, Florida Citizens, and other government agencies, including the Florida Departments of Environment and Agriculture. Non-specificity – Qwant Search
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