The Federal Government on Tuesday said the pest, Tuta absoluta,
popularly known as ‘Tomato Ebola’, which is responsible for the massive
destruction of tomato in farmlands, had invaded six states in Nigeria. It also disclosed that Nigeria spent
about N80bn ($400m) annually importing tomato paste, adding that many of
the imported products were substandard.
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh
The Minister of Agriculture and Rural
Development, Mr. Audu Ogbeh, who said this during a press briefing in
Abuja, stated that the report that tomato processing factories had
mopped-up tomato fruits in Nigeria was unfounded and untrue.
According to him, the highly
reproductive nature of the tomato pest coupled with the favourable
environment and lack of management knowledge for containment resulted in
its spread like a wild fire without any challenge. This development had
led to the destruction of tomato fruits in Jigawa, Kano, Katsina,
Kaduna, Plateau and Lagos.
Ogbeh, however, stated that the Federal
Government had started consulting with states and experts in other to
fashion out measures to tackle the pest
He said, “The pest can also attack even
pepper and Irish potato. So we are confronting something quite serious.
But the good thing is that we are tackling it right now as experts will
commence work immediately. We are bringing the commissioners and
governors of states to jointly attack this pest, which, if not dealt
with, will create serious problems for food security in our country.”
He stated that the experts had, however,
offered some varieties of tomato that grow well in the western part of
the country as alternatives.
On the amount spent on importing tomato
paste, the minister said, “We have two processing plants for tomato
paste in Nigeria, Erisco and Dangote, and their capacities are huge. We
welcome their arrival because our annual import bill of tomato paste is
about $400m and it is a good sign that we can now produce here and make
money for our farmers.”
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