The worst armyworm infestation in 10 years is affecting corn crops in northern China. The world's second largest corn producer has reduced its crop forecast, which is contributing to a steep rise in world corn prices. The price of U.S. corn in July was up almost 25 percent over the month before.
Mr. Shen’s cornfield near China's northern Changchun City has been badly destroyed. Black armyworms have eaten almost all the leaves and are piling up on the remaining stalks. It is a common scene in the two provinces of Liaoning and Jilin.
Farmers say that armyworms multiply quickly. They can finish half a farmer's crop in one day. And the worms get stuck all over the farmers clothes when they go into the fields to spray pesticides.
[Local farmer, Near Changchun]:
“The worms are really scary. They are so thick all the corn leaves are disappeared. If it continues like this, nothing will be left. Even the ground is all covered with worms.”
An NTD reporter called the Shuangliao City government office. A government officer said:
Shuangliao City government staff:
“For the details of the insect infestation, and how it is being handled, I’m really not sure.”
Farmers complain that modern pesticide sprayers cost tens of thousands of yuan, which they can't afford. So they continue to use old fashioned spraying tools that results in many of them ending up poisoned and hospitalized.
[Local farmer, Near Changchun]:
“Some are poisoned. Until now some are still in the hospital. Some even need blood transfusion. They have symptoms of tembling, fatigue, coma, and some even vomit blood.”
Professor Li Xingshu at the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Sun Yat-sen University believes that Liaoning has the ability to use helicopters to spray pesticides, and the government should take the responsibility.
Professor Li Xingshu School of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Sun Yat-sen University:
“Because Liaoning and Heilongjiang have the ability to use helicopters to spray, I think the local government and its agricultural department have the responsibility to help the farmers to solve the problem.”
Armyworm infestations erupted in other parts of the country, in early August--places such as Inner Mongolia, Hebei, Beijing, Tianjin, and Shanxi--which have caused significant damage to crops such as maize, millet and rice. CCP Ministry of Agriculture officials acknowledge that the extent of this year’s insect infestations has not been seen in a decade.
NTD, Zhu Zhishan and Ding Ning
