Farmers lose hectares of tobacco due to fake chemi...

Farmers lose hectares of tobacco due to fake chemicals

Zim Now Writer

Several farmers may have lost significant hectarage of irrigated tobacco across the country due to the use of fake chemicals on their crop.

The development has instigated the Zimbabwe Republic Police and Seed Co officials into launching a blitz on counterfeit agricultural products, especially chemicals, fertilisers and seed, that have flooded the market.

The bulk of these are being sold at illegal outlets and open spaces at prices unbelievably lower than genuine products.

Each hectare, on average produces over four tonnes of tobacco when farmers use recommended agronomic practices.

Already, liaison, pesticide approval and plant health services officers have been deployed to assess the damage caused by the use of the fake chemicals.

Tobacco Research Board (TRB) executive director for research and extension services, Susan Dimbi, warned against using unregistered agrochemicals.

“This comes as a record incidence of abnormally growing tobacco plants in the irrigated tobacco crops this October was detected. Teams on the ground established that growers had used chlorpyrifos, with rates that ranged from 750ml to 1 500 litres per hectare.

Chlorpyrifos is a hazardous pesticide whose use has been banned, not only on tobacco but on other crops in many countries worldwide.

According to Dimbi, what is puzzling is that some farmers who used the chemical were affected.

Mashonaland Central senior agronomist Lazarus Gatawa, said phytotoxicity is an adverse effect on plant physiology and inhibition of growth that is caused by applied chemical substances like fertilisers, herbicides or insecticides.