Tons of tomatoes had to be discarded in Antalya, the center for greenhouse production in Turkey, due to the tuta absoluta disease.
This particular disease arrived in Turkey in 2009 and it has been the second most damaging factor for tomato growers after the political crisis with Russia.
The growers were unable to stop the disease via pesticides and they have asked for officials to help to find out which chemicals should be used in the fight against this disease.
Some of the growers even started to stop tomato growing and moved to other products. Normally the productivity in the region is quite high with 6-7 tons of tomatoes per 10,000 square feet but tuta aboluta disease is scaring all the growers away. It is estimated that thousands of tons of tomatoes have been discarded so far due to this disease.
Source: Hedef Halk