In the southern part of China, a pest is rapidly spreading, which destroys corn crops, creating a growing threat to the global grain producer.

Fall armyworm, or Fallen Army Worm, a native of North and South America that has spread east in recent years, has already caused $ 3 billion in damage to Africa, and reached Asia last year.

According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, before turning into a moth, a worm eats leaves and stems of many plant species in large quantities and can infect and damage hundreds of hectares of corn in one night.

Reaching the southwestern Chinese province of Yunnan in January, the pest was found in April in neighboring Guangxi and Guangdong Province this month, said Wang Zhenying, a researcher at the Institute for Plant Protection of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, a government research center.

According to the scientist, about 8,493 hectares sown with corn have been damaged so far. “I expect him to cover the Yangtze River basin by May and June, and is likely to reach North China and Northeast China in June and July,” Wang said.

42 million hectares of corn is grown in China, and it is expected that around 257 million tons will be produced this year.