Ja: Moko disease threatens the livelihood of many

THE BANANA industry is much more than a lifeline for thousands of Jamaicans and scores of mainly rural communities. More than 85,000 farmers grow bananas on almost 10,000 hectares of land in several parishes. The industry earned for the country last year more than £15 million and is a constant cash flow for thousands in barely marginal existence.

It is for these reasons that the discovery of the deadly Moko disease in St. James is sending shivers through banana country. Moko is a devastating disease of banana and plantain. It also affects red ginger, heliconia, tomato, dasheen and coco.