As previously reported, the tomato pest Tuta absoluta has been attributed to causing the tomato shortage in Nigeria. Now, the Nigerian government is attempting to limit the spread of the pest further. Addressing a press conference on Tuesday 24 May in Nigeria’s capital, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr Audu Ogbeh, assured Nigerians that the government was working with a team of experts from the United Kingdom who will deliver specialised insecticides for the control of the pest.
According to him, six tomato producing states, including Plateau, Jigawa, Kano and Katsina have been affected.
He said Tuta Absoluta had high resistant to the commonly used insecticides and had the capacity of spreading to other crops like pepper and Irish potatoes.
For over a month now the price of tomatoes has gone up due to scarcity of the product, with less than seven seeds selling for 500 Naira, the highest price of the commodity in history.
Many families are depending largely on tinned tomatoes which people fear the price may begin to rise soon.
(1 Nigerian Naira=0.0050 USD)
Source: channelstv.com