Bagwai – Tomato farmers in Kano have solicited urgent government intervention to tackle worm infestation which eat up produce at their farms.
Some of the farmers who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Bagwai, Kano, said that the pest attack posed a major threat to their businesses and livelihoods.
Malam Lawan Abdullahi, a major tomato producer, expressed concern over the quantity of tomatoes destroyed by the worms.
He said that most tomato farmers were devastated due to the losses incurred.
“We have seriously been dealt with by these worms; Without government intervention, many of us will not have the capacity to grow again.”
Another farmer, Malam Muhammad Aliyu, said that the disaster was worse than the inferno witnessed at some markets in Kano.
He appealed to wealthy individuals and the government to come to their aid as most of the farmers had lost everything.
Similarly, Malam Habibu tsoho, another farmer, said he had never witnessed a terrible season such as the current one in his 30 years of tomato farming.
He appealed to farmer organisations and wealthy individual farmers to assist them to get back to business.
NAN reports that the worms biologically known as “Tuta absoluta” have invaded and destroyed tomato farms in many northern states, including Kano.
The development has led to the scarcity and high cost of tomatoes across markets, making the produce unaffordable to the masses.
