Tuesday, 24 May 2016

State declares 'tomato state of emergency'

 

Tomatoes1 
A state of emergency has been declared in the tomato sector in Kaduna state, north of the capital, Abuja, local media are reporting.Kaduna's Governor Mallam Nasir El-Rufai declared the emergency, saying that 80% of tomato farms have been ravaged by a pest called Tuta Absoluta, Nigeria's Guardian newspaper reports.

Total losses in the past month alone among a group of 200 farmers are estimated at 1bn naira ($5.1m), he added.

The price of a basket of tomatoes has increased from $1.20 less than three months ago to more than $40 today.

The word "tomato" has been trending on Twitter in Nigeria this morning.

No comments:

Post a Comment