Some yaqona farmers on the island of Kadavu say they are looking at other means of earning money because dieback disease is killing their crop.
Ravitaki district representative Vianeri Ratulogadrau said the disease was spreading on many yaqona farms.
He explained that dieback was the gradual deterioration of health in trees which sometimes led to its death. This was usually caused by a combination of factors such as disease and pathogens, insect attack and/or stressful climate conditions.
“Yaqona farming is the main source of income for many villagers on the island of Kadavu,” Mr Ratulogadrau said.
“Dieback virus has affected a lot of yaqona farms on the island and there is nothing we can do.
“So whenever the virus is detected, farmers are left with no choice but to look for other land to plant yaqona and the process starts all over again.
“Yaqona farming is not easy. A lot of work and effort goes into the clearing of land, planting the crop and then maintaining it. It takes three to five years to harvest, just imagine, after all that hard work, the dieback virus just destroys them.”
