Locusts swarm in south Ukraine as war disrupts pest control
that are breeding in inaccessible areas near the frontline.
The insects are capable of devastating crops in days,
and officials say Russia's war has made using traditional pest control methods impossible.
In the Zaporizhzhia region swarms of locusts have been covering roads, fields and bushes.
And producers say the insects have destroyed up to a third of their sunflower crops.
Small scale farmer, Oleh Tolmatov, says it's never been as bad.
"We saw a big swarm. And the next day the 'infantry' marched in. The small ones ate everything that was hanging low. They ate everything. The big ones flew around and then flew away. And the small ones crawled. And they are still here, still jumping around. They covered everything like a big blanket."
Local and government officials declined to provide data on the extent of the infestation or damage caused.
But Ukraine's Chief Phytosanitary Inspector, Vadym Chaikovskyi, says the war is squarely to blame.
He explains that in addition to high temperatures, the conflict has resulted in an increased amount of neglected land.
The inability to use aircraft for spraying and the absence of birds that would prey on them due to the fighting is further complicating the crisis.
Ukraine is the world's largest sunflower oil exporter and before the war ranked fifth among wheat exporters.
But war has changed the landscape.
According to Denys Marchuk, deputy head of Ukraine's largest farm producers' union UAC, the destruction of the Kakhovka dam on the Dnipro River by Russian forces in 2023 created vast swampy areas ideal for locust breeding.
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Los Angeles Times
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