25 Sep 2009

PNG to spend four million dollars to control Cocoa Pod Borer

10:10 am on 25 September 2009

The Papua New Guinea autonomous province of Bougainville is calling for up to four million US dollars to control a pest that's threatening its cocoa industry, which is worth 45 million US dollars annually.

The head of Bougainville's Primary Industry Division says they are seeking money from the National Government to raise awareness about the Cocoa Pod Borer pest, as well as to fund material and strategies to manage it.

Sam Rangai says the management of the pest needs to be addressed because it's impossible to destroy it.

He says the moth has a life cycle of about two weeks

"As an adult, in the two weeks it lays two hundred plus eggs and in just 20-weeks, the population exponential growth is about 400 million moths in just 20 weeks, at which this pest can spread over large areas of land and even across sea."

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