{"id":217562,"date":"2016-05-27T14:05:04","date_gmt":"2016-05-27T14:05:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/citifmonline.com\/?p=217562"},"modified":"2016-05-27T14:05:04","modified_gmt":"2016-05-27T14:05:04","slug":"nigerias-kaduna-state-declares-tomato-emergency","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/2016\/05\/nigerias-kaduna-state-declares-tomato-emergency\/","title":{"rendered":"Nigeria’s Kaduna state declares ‘tomato emergency’"},"content":{"rendered":"
A state of emergency has been declared in the tomato sector in Kaduna state, northern Nigeria, local media report.<\/p>\n
A moth called the Tomato Leaf Miner, or Tuta Absoluta, has ravaged 80% of tomato farms, Commissioner of Agriculture Daniel Manzo Maigar said.<\/p>\n
He said 200 farmers together lost at least 1bn naira ($5.1m; \u00a33.5m) over the past month.<\/p>\n
The price of a basket of tomatoes has increased from $1.20 less than three months ago to more than $40 today.<\/p>\n
In Nigeria, officials declare a state of emergency to indicate they are taking drastic action to deal with a problem, the BBC’s Muhammad Kabir Muhammad says.<\/p>\n
In this case the state sent government agricultural officials to Kenya to meet experts on the Tomato Leaf Miner to learn how to deal with the pest.<\/p>\n
Kaduna is in the north of the country, where according to the UN most tomato production takes place,<\/p>\n
A tomato paste manufacturing business in northern Kano state owned by Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, suspended production earlier in the month due to the lack of tomatoes, reports Forbes.<\/p>\n