Agriculture minister taking aim at yam rust disease

WESTERN BUREAU:

Agriculture Minister Floyd Green says the government is making a conscious effort to blunt the spread of yam rust disease, which is negatively impacting farmers in Trelawny and other farming areas.

“We have seen what diseases have done to a number of crop lines. We can’t afford for that to happen [to] yam,” said Green. “That would be a devastating blow to our agricultural sector, so I assure all the farmers in this area that we will do everything in our power. We are not going to spare any resource to help you fight this disease.”

Green gave that assurance while speaking to yam farmers in Lorrimers, Trelawny, on Wednesday afternoon, noting that extensive research by the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA), the agriculture ministry and other stakeholders, is currently under way to ascertain what fungicide should be shared with the farmers.

Yam rust, also known as Goplana dioscorea and Goplana australis, is reportedly caused by a fungal pathogen. Its symptoms include yellow spots or pustules on upper leaf surfaces. The fungus was first spotted in north Manchester, and sections of Clarendon. However, it has since spread to the south Trelawny yam belt.

With the disease rearing its ugly head across hundreds of negro yam fields, Green has sought to comfort farmers by explaining that his ministry is working closely to find solutions to their distress, stressing the importance yam plays in the local economy.

According to the recently published Economic and Social Survey Jamaica (ESSJ), the country earned US$40.8 million or roughly J$6.7 billion from the export of yam in 2023. The earnings were a 16.5 per cent jump over 2022.

“We have not taken this for granted ... Yam is our most important domestic crop. There is no other crop more important than yam. It is our number-one domestic export,” said Green.

“Yam is critical to us and not just to us at a national level, but to so many families in this southern Trelawny belt, that we cannot lay on our laurels. We have to ... try and stem the spread of the yam rust disease,” he added.

While pointing to a demonstration plot that has been gravely affected by yam rust, Green explained that researchers have sprayed the leaves with different chemicals to find the best fungicide. He also shared that the J$9 million that was allocated by the government was provided to RADA. This, Green said, is an early-stage intervention as the ministry “can’t wait until we decide what is best”.

“As soon as we recognised that yam rust was out there, we made an allocation of $9 million to the RADA team to start procuring chemicals that we could provide to the farmers who are impacted, so that they at least have a fighting chance against the disease,” noted Green.

The agriculture minister further noted that farmers have voiced concerns regarding a shortage of manpower in the fields, so the ministry is also providing the assistance to spray their affected crops.

“I’m going to see how we can use a drone in this area, [so] that we can use it to spray our yam fields,” he said.

At the same time, Green shared that yam farmers will also see more resources and allocations coming from the government. He further stated that yam has been identified as a “priority crop” and farmers will be given major support to ease the burden of production cost.

“I have already committed that we are going to give more support to yam farmers. I must tell you that I know over the years you have worked so hard, and you feel like oftentimes you don’t get the support from the ministry. That is something that I am changing.”

In the meantime, councillor for the Lorrimers division, Desmond Smith, said yam farmers in his area are eager to obtain further assistance from the government as they rush to save their crops.

“We are looking forward for every help from the ministry to get it under control so the people’s livelihood can continue,” Smith told The Gleaner on Wednesday afternoon.

While acknowledging that the vast majority of his constituents are yam farmers, who supply their produce to the export market, Smith is hoping that all will not be lost for his rural division.

“I have to be concerned because yam is the lifeline of this area so once yam goes, the earning power also goes, and they won’t be able to meet their daily demands. So we have to make sure that this yam rust disease is controlled,” Smith said.

rochelle.clayton@gleanerjm.com