Army Worm |
This comes after
the department positively identified the Fall Army Worm on maize crops
in Amajuba, uThukela, uMkhanyakude and Zululand Districts.
The outbreak in the
province follows a pest alert issued by the Department of Agriculture,
Forestry and Fisheries on 1 February 2017.
Fall Army Worm is a
new quarantine pest in South Africa, which affects a wide range of
crops including maize, sorghum, soya beans, ground nuts and potatoes.
The pest is a fast traveller and cannot be contained in one specific
area.
During a media
briefing in Durban on Tuesday, MEC Mthembu said the department has put
up an emergency Plant Pest Response Plan, which is already in motion.
As part of mitigating the scourge, the department will conduct pest scouting, collecting and reporting on the spread and damage.
"The department
will conduct awareness and education to producers, solicit resources for
control such as procurement of agrochemicals and traps, and promote
integrated pest management.
"The department is
working closely with Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
and farmers to determine other hosts affected. A creation of database to
coordinate other provinces is being considered," MEC Mthembu said.
The MEC also called
on commercial and subsistence farmers to report any suspected detection
of Fall Army Worm to the department's local and district offices for
immediate quarantine and intervention.
He said that since
the Fall Army Worm is a new pest in South Africa, an interim control
programme aimed at assisting farmers with a proper guide for pesticides
usage as an emergency measure is being done.
"Such a control
programme would be effectively communicated to all various role players
and would be made available on the Department of Agriculture, Forestry
and Fisheries website and our own website.
"Presently, the
department has pesticides products which are approved for usage in
controlling the Army Worm in the maize and other crops vulnerable to it.
"I want to
encourage all farmers that they use registered pesticides products in
fighting this scourge. We direct farmers to use products approved in
terms of fertilizer, farm feeds, Agricultural Remedies and Stock
Remedies Act, of 1947 (Act no. 36)."
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