By Amindeh Blaise Atabong

YAOUNDE (Reuters) -Black pod disease is ravaging cocoa plantations in Cameroon’s Southwest region, one of the country’s top cocoa belts, driven by weeks of heavy rains and a surge in counterfeit agrochemicals, an official and industry figures said on Tuesday.

Brown rot or black pod disease is a fungal disease that attacks cocoa pods and trees and can spread in wet conditions. Cameroon is the world’s fifth largest cocoa producer.

Jackson Ntapi Nkwentang, the Southwest region’s agriculture delegate, said the downpours have been very intense since July, creating ideal conditions for fungal infection, especially in the main cocoa-producing hubs of Muyuka, Mbonge and Kumba.

“It is a serious issue,” the senior official told Reuters. “We are advising [growers] to int

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