Over a month now the hike in price of tomatoes has reach record high due to a disease known as Tatu Absoluta. Less than 5 seeds of tomatoes were sold at the rate of N500 in Calabar and beyond as we all experienced lately.
In a press conference on Tuesday in Abuja, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr Audu Ogbeh, assured Nigerians that the government is working with a team of experts from the United Kingdom who will deliver specialised insecticides for the control of the disease.
According to him, the disease has affected six tomato producing states, including Plateau, Jigawa, Kano and Katsina.
He said Tuta Absoluta had high resistant to the commonly used insecticides and had the capacity of spreading to other crops like pepper and Irish potatoes.