Opposition wants greater support for onion farmers affected by beet armyworm infestation

The Opposition People's National Party says it is deeply concerned by the recent cries of onion farmers in St Thomas who have suffered crop losses due to a beet armyworm infestation.

The farmers have complained about a lack of crop management support from the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA).

READ: Beet armyworm holding onion farms hostage

Opposition Spokesperson on Agriculture Lothan Cousins is joining calls from the onion farmers for greater intervention from RADA.

He recalled that recently, in the same parish and for the same crop, farmers displayed their displeasure at RADA for not fulfilling promises to supply productive inputs, primarily seeds and, in some instances, effective chemicals for pest control.

“With the pain of those broken promises displayed on national television, the farmers have yet again been left to tackle the beet armyworm infestation on their own,” said Cousins in a statement.

In the past, there was a beet armyworm infestation issue which resulted in millions of dollars in losses for farmers, some of whom have not recovered, he argued.

With the intervention of RADA, it was thought that the issue had been terminated.

Cousins said the  opposition is disappointed that there has been no adequate policy intervention by the Government to achieve food security and that a comprehensive production programme for onion farmers in St Thomas has not been devised.

Given that onion has been one of the targeted crops for import substitution and has benefitted from the various production incentive programmes for well over a decade, the opposition spokesperson said, “I am disheartened that the challenges encountered over this period, including beet armyworm infestation along with supporting prescriptive measures, have not been sufficiently documented, researched and communicated to our farmers.”

He is calling for the government to provide the necessary resources to support onion farmers in St Thomas and also the other farmers that have traditionally produced quality onions in St Elizabeth, Trelawny, Clarendon, St Catherine and St Ann.

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