Fall armyworm threat lingers
Nyasha Chingono Own Correspondent
THE fall armyworm will remain a problem in Zimbabwe, but farmers should desist from excessive use of pesticides to deal with the pests, the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has warned.
“We don’t expect the fall armyworm to be eradicated; we have to learn to live with it. We advise farmers to use integrated pest management rather than use chemical pesticides which are dangerous for the natural enemies of the fall army worm and the people who use them,” the FAO country director, David Phiri, told The Financial Gazette.
The fall armyworm has already affected this season’s yields, which are expected to be lower than the 2016/17 agriculture season.
“More than 150 000 hectares have been affected by the fall armyworm and this was expected. Last season was the first occurrence and normally with the fall armyworm, the second and third seasons are worst so we can expect that we will continue to have problems with fall armyworm,” Phiri said urging A2 farmers to use bio pesticides, which are less dangerous to the environment, to preserve yields.
Last year, African governments spent over $3 billion on pesticides to control the pest, which ravaged the largest part of sub-Saharan Africa, according to an international research centre.
But the chemical pesticides have since failed to deal with the pest. The pesticides have instead destroyed 80 known maize varieties in South America.
Phiri praised farmers for integrating natural methods of controlling the pest.
“It’s not easy for that message to go across, but we need patience. But most farmers are using the methods we are proposing,” added Phiri.
Due to the fall armyworm and the mid-season drought, this year’s maize yields would not be as good as last year, FAO warned.
Government has since embarked on a crop and livestock assessment programme to ascertain the impact of the mid-season drought and the fall army-worm that threaten the country’s food security.
The country’s food security is somewhat guaranteed due to prevailing stocks in some parts of the country.
“Since we have stocks in some parts of the country, we expect that Zimbabwe
will be food secure this year,” Phiri said.