Deadly tomato disease destroys over 300 hectares of farmlands in Kano
The Federal Government is seeking funding to tackle the outbreak
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The Federal Government is seeking funding to tackle the outbreak, which has already ravaged over 300 farmlands worth ₦1.3 billion in Kano State alone.
Other affected states include Katsina, Kaduna, and Gombe, with the possibility of further spread to other states.
In response to the crisis, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture is currently in talks with the Federal Ministry of Finance to leverage the Tomato Levy Fund.
The FMARD director also criticised tomato processors in the country for failing to comply with the backward integration initiative of the federal government. The initiative aimed to encourage local processors to use 50 percent of locally grown tomatoes as their raw input.
Lordbanjou noted that most of the local processors still imported 100 percent of raw tomatoes into the country, which hinders the growth of the local tomato industry.
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