FAO steps up response to serious tomato pest in Near East

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is stepping up its response to a tomato-eating moth that is threatening crops in the Near East.

FAO says the idea is to keep damage to a minimum with environmentally and economically sustainable methods that reduce the heavy use of pesticides, and favour the use of natural enemies and “attract-and-kill” pheromone traps.

Planning is underway for a sub-regional project to manage the tomato borer, or Tuta absoluta, in Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and Yemen, drawing on proven techniques used most recently in various Mediterranean countries.