Nigeria has so far lost more than N1.3 billion to the outbreak of Tuta absoluta, commonly known as “Tomato Ebola” in three states.

Disclosing this at a capacity-building workshop for financial institutions yesterday in Abuja, Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Sen. Abubakar Kyari, said the outbreak had consequently led to the surge of a 50-kilogramme basket of tomatoes from N5,000 to N10,000 and about N30,000, thereby worsening food inflation and straining household budgets.

Kyari, who said the losses were recorded in Kano, Katsina and Kaduna states, explained that tomato ebola could decimate tomato crops within 48 hours, leading to catastrophic yield losses.

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