Tuta absoluta pest on vegetable crops first found in the United Kingdom

Date:12-15-2009


Favourites such as baked beans, ketchup and tomato soup could soon cost a lot more because of the pest Tuta absoluta.
 
Tuta absoluta ( What is it? ) is described as the greatest threat ever faced by tomato growers, and it has been found in the UK this year [2009] for the 1st time.
 
The bug has the potential to wipe out the supplies of any grower who discovers it, affecting any product relying on tomatoes as an ingredient.
 
Also known as the South American tomato moth, it is already devastating crops in Spain, the main producer of the fruit, but has spread to every other European country.
 
The Government has confirmed 9 cases so far in UK nurseries, where tomatoes are grown from seeds, plus 14 at packing stations for fruit imported from Spain and Italy.
 
Packaging is to blame for the pest arriving in Britain, according to the Governments Food and Environment Research Agency.
 
It believes growers bought specialised packaging from Europe for their own fruit that had previously been used for infected tomatoes.
 
The 10 mm caterpillar of the moth burrows into the tomato plants and lays its eggs, damaging the plants ability to convert sunlight to energy.
 
Gerry Hayman of the British Tomato Growers Association said: "We need to do something about it now."