Kazakhstan is bracing itself for an outbreak of locusts threatening 640,000 hectares of land, total.kz reported.

The Ministry of Agriculture warned this year’s outbreak may exceed the one seen in 2020 by 125,000 hectares.  A joint meeting was held by the ministry to put together plan for common pest management in border areas, and document was signed on a number of measures to prevent the spread of locust.

The government has allocated two billion tenge ($4.8 million) to purchase  pesticides and for the chemical treatment of the areas under threat.

The threat to Kazakhstan’s crops is expected to be even greater than that forecast for Russia, which is anticipating the pest will spread to an area of ​​590,000 hectares.