Nigerian tomato farmers lose 2 billion naira to insect infestation, fear say price fit shoot up

BBC News

17-04-2025

Tomato Famers Association of Nigeria (TFA) don express fear say tomato go soon scarce and price fit go up sake of one kain pest wey cause serious damage to many tomato farms for parts of di kontri.
Thousands of farmers don suffer from dis mata afta dem invest dia money inside tomato farming, di association tok. Di association say dem don already dey see how di disease scata farms.
Di Tomato Farmers Association don complain say since March dis year, dem don dey see di infestation of Tuta Absoluta, wey be major destructive pest of tomato worldwide, e don damage many farms for some northern Nigerian states.
Some farmers tok say dem don lose millions of naira sake of wetin happun to dia crops.
Sani Danladi Yada-Kwari, wey be Chairman of Kano State Tomato Farmers Association and National Secretary of di association, tok say di disease don cause serious palava for Kano, Jigawa and Bauchi states.
"Especially here for Kano State, e don really affect us, becos pipo wey get tomato farms never harvest anytin. But dose wey plant am since November and December dem never see disease for dia farms."
E add say, "One pesin wey finish work for im farm,dey tink say im go harvest, na so tomato spoil. Somebodi tell me say e enta im farm see di tomato, but afta three days, di worm don destroy evritin."
Na why traders dey predict say dis year, tomato price go cost well well sake of say di disease don destroy plenty farms.
As for how much farmers don lose, Alhaji Sani Yada-Kwari tok say dem still dey collect figures "but I fit assure you say for Kano State alone, farmers don lose notin less dan 20 billion naira".
According to im, hot weather na one of di tins wey dey make dis tomato disease worse, and e hard to cure, as e no dey respond to treatment easily.
Di Secretary of Tomato Traders Association for Kaba Market for Kano, Alin Bello, also tok say tomatoes don dey scarce for market now sake of dis wahala.
E tok say, "Basoda na one kain tomato wey no good at all, and plenty pipo no dey gree buy am and e scarce. If you carry am come market and you no sell am quick, bifor night worms go chop am finish. Dis one don make good quality tomato scarce for many parts of Kano."
One tomato seller for Kuntau area of Kano, Sulaiman Yusuf, tok say one month ago dem bin dey buy big basket of tomato for veri cheap price.
"One month ago, we bin dey buy big basket of tomato for between 15,000 to 20,000. But now di price don go up to 30,000 naira to 40,000 naira per basket, depending on which kain tomato you buy."
Yusuf still add say for coming weeks, di price of tomato fit go higher again.
"Di way tins be now, I believe say tomato price go soon high pass last year own wey we buy one basket for around 200,000."
Di disease na veri dangerous one for tomato, and Alhaji Sani Danladi Yada-Kwari, wey be Chairman of Kano State Tomato Farmers Association, dey advise farmers make dem act fast as soon as dem see signs of di disease for dia farms. E also beg goment make dem help farmers sharp sharp.