The Nation Newspaper

Category: Agriculture

  • Nurturing the next generation of agro exporters

    A strong agro exports sector has both economic and social benefits. For this reason, stakeholders met in Lagos to discuss ways to boost farmers’ income through agro exports. DANIEL ESSIET reports.

    Jeriedayaro Uwheraka, Chief Executive, Frijay Consult Inc, is an agro exporter.  She began her exports business in 2005, with smoked fish production. She later grew a variety of vegetable crops for export.

    Today, Mrs Uwheraka has turned vegetable export into a multi-million naira business. As a profitable venture,  some Nigerians are taking up vegetable export as business.

    In Lagos, alone, vegetables and other agro exports have transformed the standard of living of many entrepreneurs who  depend on staple crops for food and income.

    Uwheraka‘s experience is an example of how export is improving the income and productivity of small farmers. Every week, tonnes of vegetables are dispatched for export to Europe and the United States. Farmers diligence and timely harvestm help to produce premium crops of high quality. Vegetables have generated higher and more reliable profits than staple crops. The profits from the exports, according to these farmers, have helped them to solve their financial needs including payment for their children’s education and medical bills. Some said they have built houses and made a number of investments in their farms. Uwheraka explained that vegetables and horticultural production is cumbersome especially when done for the export market. Strict international standards relating to vegetables and agro exports, she said, compounds the challenges. For this reason, she said small farmers have to learn how to produce specific crops in accordance with international best practices. The concern of the Lagos State government  is that  there are very few smallholders involved in the nation’s fruit and vegetable exports. Besides,  very few smallholders are experienced in growing vegetables and horticultural crops for exports. A lot of them don’t know how to meet the requirements of exporters.

    Addressing a stakeholders workshop on agricultural produce export  organised by the Lagos State Agricultural Development Authority, its Programme Manager, Mr. Kayode Ashafa said Kenyan vegetables and horticultural exports are cited as a success story in African agriculture when Nigerian farmers can do better . With the  natural potential of the land to support cultivation of exportable fruit and vegetable, Nigerians can do better, he said.

    He said that in Kenya, vegetables and horticulture export is a big business with produce transported overnight in aircraft to reach Europe in the morning.

    His account describes the serial feats of coordination, discipline, productivity and manual labour, which make Kenyan horticulture competitive in global markets.

    Many of the lessons of Kenyan  agro exports success  can be applied here, he said.

    For him, Nigeria has an advantage because fruits and vegetables can be grown on a wide range of different types of conditions, from small farms with less than two hectares using family labour to large-scalecommercial farms with over 100 hectares and advanced technology.

    He observed that the number of smallholders producing for export is relatively small, adding  that Lagos State is ready to support more farmers to explore the European markets.

    According to him, agro exports is  an industry that if well developed  can transform the livelihoods of rural populations in Lagos.

    His conviction is based on the fact  that  flowers, fruit and vegetables from Africa occupy a big place in Europe and the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of small farmers could be transformed by their hard-won stake in a such emerging global trade.

    He believes that thousands of farming families can been lifted out of poverty if Lagos emerged as a major player in the booming world trade in high-qualitycut flowers, vegetables and agro exports.

    According to him,  Lagos  State  has   a strong long-term interest in ensuring that agro exporters meet international standards by playing a pivotal role in supporting the growth of the  export industry, and enabling  local companies and producing households to sell the ever increasing volumes of agro exports abroad. To achieve that objective, he said the state would want farmers to increase production of high value produce but added that such activity should be done in full respect of the environment.

    He highlighted the challenges of the local export sector, which include: insufficient understanding of the domestic and international markets; logistical issues; and technical challenges such as application of new varieties.

    According to him, exports to highly demanding markets – where insistence on high-quality is paramount, have  increased  worldwide. He reiterated  the readiness of the government to work with   stakeholders to develop an export strategy that will benefit stakeholders across the sector, assist local farmers develop top-quality produce; improve support services – such as customs, quarantines, quality inspection, cooling systems, air and rail transportation and establishing a core group of model farmers and firms.

    Ashafa said the state wants to work with stakeholders to map out the next phase of the industry’s development. This involves finding ways to overcome several  new challenges.

    He said the state government is ready to train smallholders who   can produce a reliable supply of fresh vegetables to meet the stringent quality standards and short inventory period of supermarkets in Europe.

    Ashafa stressed the need for  small farmers to increase their bargaining position by organising themselves through groups. Farming groups enable smallholders to negotiate with a single voice, improving their bargaining position, he added. If one exporter does not offer a fair price, they can try another. Exporters negotiate directly with farming groups to agree on the exact quantities farmers will produce and the price per kilo.

    According to The Technical Adviser, Operations (Value Chain) Office of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mrs Toyin Adetunji, the market opportunities offered growers by the European and  United States buyers are some of the most financially attractive but most exacting. However, to access the opportunity requires compliance with a strict regulatory framework of measures designed to ensure human and plant health. The measures, she noted, goes beyond the international requirements set under the sanitary phytosanitary and technical barriers to trade agreements.

    Mrs Adetunji  said many farmers are ill-equipped to take advantage of the opportunities provided by export trade. These include weak infrastructure, lack of capacity and the inability to meet technical product specifications and stringent requirements in terms of quality, safety, health and the environment. These impede their integration into global markets.

    She said farmers and agro exporters need to enhance compliance with technical standards to heighten consumer confidence and gain access to regional and global value chains.

    With the globalisation of production, supply and retailer chains,  Adetunji  noted that ensuring the safety and quality of agro produce is vital. Recent health concerns arising from bovine diseases, bird flu and various toxins entering the food chain, have led to stringent standards and conformity procedures, particularly in the area of agro-food exports.

    According  to her, exporting countries must acquire the capability to conform to requirements in terms of quality, safety, health and the environment if they are to participate fully in global markets.

    Adetunji said developing business in agro commodities represents great potential for growth and employment. The challenge, she noted, however, lies in effective and efficient exporting to the right markets. Capacity building, she stressed, is required along the value chain, from production to export.

    She said challenges are principally operational and practical. The importers want produce delivered in the agreed quality, quantity and price, on time, and to the agreed destination. These requirements have become more complex for producers and exporters over time and they now face additional criteria.

    Domestic challenges for producers include insufficient infrastructure from roads to collection centres, to packing houses and insufficient access to finance. The main difficulties lie with the quality and scarcity of inputs, post-harvest techniques, and pest control, with fruit fly control requiring effective regional cooperation.

    She said while farmers have  shown increasing interest in exploring opportunities in the export markets, it is important, they be encouraged to deepen their understanding of issues that characterise specific market demands.

    She said exporters have very specific quality requirements for crops   variety and so farmers need to work hard to meet international expectations.

    She stressed the need to have agronomists to provide on-farm training to help smallholders to meet international norms.

    The technical standards apply to processors and the rest of the food supply chain to farmers.

    Adetunji said that there are significant costs to be borne for such market access and these are usually paid by the supply chain participants.

    On the whole, it makes sense for more Nigerians to grow crops for export, she said but noted that farmers have to be trained in good agricultural practices, adapting their farming methods to European standards.

    The Head, Component Rural Institution Development, Lagos  State Agricultural Development Authority, Mrs Eunice Adewale said  the  authority was established to improve agricultural productivity, increase the  standard of living of farmers and promote sustainable food production in  a healthy environment through efficient extension service delivery.

    According  to her, the technical  service component of the authority links with research institute and universities for improved technologies on crop protection, livestock, fisheries, farm mechanisation, agro processing and women in agriculture for value addition.

    She said  the Lagos State Government is  ready to work with farmers  to boost exports but want them to register with the cooperative department of the Ministry of Agriculture.

     

  • Plant breeders to boost Africa’s indigenous crops

    Two hundred and fifty plant breeders from different African countries are currently at the newly opened African Plant Breeding Academy in Nairobi, Kenya, to examine the nutritional and productivity levels of about a hundred African crops. Upon completion of the project, which is set to last five years, these breeders will be able to advise smallholder farmers in their respective countries on the crops with high yields and nutrition.

    Crop yields and nutrition are boosted when farmers cultivate the right crops, says Howard-Yana Shapiro, an assistant professor at the College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences at the University of California–Davis, US, which is involved in this project. “What we are trying to do is help correct the lack of nutritional content in many indigenous African food crops.”

    Under the umbrella of the African Orphan Crops Consortium (AOCC), the University of California is collaborating with the African Union through the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), the International Livestock Research Institute, the World Agroforestry Center and others to implement this high-tech initiative.

    The consortium launched the plant-breeding academy, the first of its kind in Africa, last December. Ngozi Abu, one of the trainees and also a senior lecturer in the Department of Plant Science and Biotechnology at the University of Nigeria, emphasises that African researchers should take the lead in research on African crops. Only African scientists or those working in Africa know the desires of African farmers and consumers, she said. Ms. Abu believes thatAfrican crops such as “cocoyam and plantains could become the nutritious crops of the world tomorrow.”

    The 250 plant breeders will use new equipment and techniques to “genetically sequence, assemble and annotate the genomes” of the hundred African crops, explains Margaret Kroma, an assistant director general at the World Agroforestry Centre. It’s about getting the DNA of crops, Allen Van Deynze of the University of California Seed Biotechnology Center told Africa Renewal in an interview. He maintains that if breeders understand the DNA of crops, farmers could even get information on crops with strong resistance to climate change, in addition to being able to select those with higher nutritional content and yields.

    Throwing his weight behind the academy, Ibrahim Mayaki, the head of the NEPAD, says, “Malnutrition is a direct product of food insecurity. A large number of Africans suffer deficiencies of micronutrients such as minerals, iron and vitamin A, with devastating effect on the population.” According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), malnutrition is responsible for more than half of child deaths in developing countries.

    Deynze likened this initiative to using a smart cell phone instead of an analogue landline phone.  African breeders will “take advantage of the latest technologies to rapidly advance development of crops that are important to African diets and health,” he says, adding that farmers easily double their yields when they plant the right seeds.

    One of the first crops to be examined is the baobab. The fruit can be made into a powder for consumer products. Agricultural scientists refer to the baobab as a “wonder tree” because it has 10 times the antioxidants of oranges, twice the calcium of spinach, three times the vitamin C of oranges and four times the potassium of bananas.

  • ‘Pest arrivals a concern for agriculture’

    Hundreds of unwanted pests making it into the  country as a result of climate change could present an unacceptable risk to farming, Dean, Faculty of Agriculture, Prof  Abiodun Adeloye has said .

    According to him, the nation’s  agriculture could be  crawling with pests and diseases introduced from other countries.

    Approximately 500 insects are serious pests in crops and millions of naira are be lost annually, in part, from lost crop production and greater management expenses that  often follow pest  invasion.

    Recognising the risks posed  by pests, the don stressed the need for  stiff regulation of trade to limit new arrivals.

    According to him, pests such as insects, snakes, frogs and spiders made it through border checks each year.

    Adeloye said any lax security could potentially be disastrous to the agriculture industry.

    With climate change  and  insects  migration  across the  borders, the  don said Nigeria could become a breeding ground for invading pests, which could be disastrous for the ecosystem.

    He said staff at borders has   to   work hard to try to weed out unwanted pests, but passengers also needed to do their part by declaring risk items at borders.

    The problem of alien or exotic species, he noted, borders on their costs to agriculture, forestry, and industry. The price they exert on the nation’s forests, grasslands, and waterways, however, is at least as great.

    Containing these invasions, he  said, requires shared commitment and action,calling for prompt attention and action to safeguard nation’s agricultural sector.

    The potential impact of insects,   on native plants, animals, watersheds, and farmlands, according  to him, are enormous. He said the  ministry needs vigilant inspectors  to watch them before they escape into the wild.

    Raising public awareness and concern about the problem on plants and animals, he noted,  would help state and federal agencies to deal effectively with the issue.

    According to him, the sector  needs a good public service that uses education and social network research to ensure that farmers are supported to learn from an evidence-based source.

    He noted that it takes a long time for farmers to adopt new technologies and that they require complex changes to their farm systems, which requires understanding of the science behind them.

    He explained that extension officers are providers of advice to farmers.

    He said the way to improve the uptake of new technologies is to make use of extension officers to  ensure farmers access information that can make them better farmers.

    He said farmers must use up-to-date research to make the step-change and meet profitability targets set by the industry.

     

  • Govt approves introduction of new fertiliser input

    The Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has approved the introduction of Urea Super Granule (USG) fertilisers as one of the agro-inputs to be distributed under the Growth Enhancement Support (GES) scheme.

    According to the Communications Coordinator, the International Fertilizer Distribution Centre (IFDC), Mrs. Feyikemi Adurogbanga, the new fertilizer input will be distributed in Kano, Kebbi, Jigawa, Niger, and Sokoto on a pilot base.

    She said the technology, which is mainly practiced under irrigated system enables farmers to minimize production costs, use less quantity of fertilizer, increase yield and reduces runoff and volatilization rate of urea.

    “The urea briquettes are produced using briquetting machines. USAID-MARKETS II project is partnering with the Federal Government to increase awareness and develop a robust market demand for the UDP technology amongst smallholder farmers.

    “The USG fertilizer is a component of the Urea Deep Placement (UDP) technology introduced in Nigeria by IFDC. It is currently being promoted by the United States Agency of International Development (USAID USAID-MarketsII, maximizing agricultural revenue in key Enterprises and Targeted Sites II (Markets II) project.

    “The UDP technology is a one-time application of urea (briquettes) 5-7cm deep into the soil in between four transplanted rice stands,” she said in a statement in Abuja.

    According to her, since the inception of the project in 2012, about 200,000 farmers have been trained on the UDP technology.

    She added that the partnership will cause an increase in farmers trained because targeted farmers will receive training from USAID-MARKETS II project in the various redemption centers across the five states.

    Director of the Federal Fertilizer Department,  the Ministry of Agriculture, Mr. Akinbolawa Osho,explained that the introduction of the input into GES will increase the robustness of the scheme as well as develop a new input supply chain that will create jobs for various actors.

    “Each Farmer will receive 40Kg of USG fertilizers; in addition to two 50kg bags of NPK and improved seeds during the upcoming dry season GES at an approved subsidy rate.”

     

     

  • ‘Oil palm plantations can create 100,000 jobs’

    Oil palm  plantations  can create  about 100,000 jobs, an  expert, Dr  Umoru Omodi.

    Omodi, a former Executive Director, National Institute For Oil Palm Research(NIFOR), Benin, Edo State,  said  the  palm oil industry can  provide  jobs  in rural areas and contribute to economic development.

    According  to him,  many  experts  and  households can  be   involved in palm oil production and this  would   have major repercussions for the livelihoods and food security of many people.

    As demand for palm oil increases, he said companies  should   be  cleared to make room for large plantations.

    To avoid contributing to deforestation and social problems, he   said   buyers of palm oil should subscribe  to the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), which requires producers to apply strict environmental and social standards to their operations. He   said   the  RSPO has set strict standards for responsible oil palm plantations, coupled with an independent system for auditing plantations, mills and the supply chain right up to the end users.

    Globally,  he  said many large corporations have already made commitments to use only certified sustainable palm oil by next year causing ,adding  it was critical  for  local  companies  across  the  entire palm oil supply chain to set globally agreed upon standards for best practice in palm oil production.

    According  to him,local companies that do not follow suit may easily be left behind in the changing landscape of the global market.

    He   said  oil  palm  plantains   would   create  new opportunities for developing agriculture and infrastructure to support farming.

    Where outside investment is needed to sustain agriculture and improve productivity and livelihoods, he   said   foreign  investment  in  oil palm business  would   support  local farmers.

    Getting the best deal from incoming investors, Omodi noted, re-quires effective regulation, rigorous scrutiny of investment proposals, transparency in decision-making, skilfully negotiated contracts and robust social and environmental impact assessments.

     

     

     

  • Poultry faces rising feeds’ prices

    Poultry  is facing hard times following the soaring prices of feeds.

    Poultry  feeds account for  about 70  per cent of  the  total  cost of  chicken production.

    Speaking with The Nation, the   President, Poultry Association of Nigeria(PAN), Dr Ayo Oduntan  said  the  increase is  affecting   poultry  producers,  which relies heavily on animal feeds.

    He said the  prices of   soya bean  and  maize  which are   major components  in the  feed formulation matrix is responsible for this. Soya beans, he explained, has risen sharply , while  that  of  maize  has  come down in the  last few  months, attributed  the  efforts of the  Minister  of  Agriculture and Rural Development , Dr Akinwumi  Adesina  to  improve  local  production  of maize.

    This, however, he  explained  has not helped  to bring  that the  cost of  feed since soya beans  is  still  in key factor. Proper  chicken feed includes corn, soyabean  meal besides minerals and vitamins.

    Feeds are going up due to  poor production of soyabeans nationwide.

    To watchers, the   cost  of   animal feeds have gone up by between 40 and 50 per cent since 2012, an unprecedented rise. This has locked hundreds of thousands of livestock   farmers out of the feeds market which are key in complementing the dwindling pasture occasioned by failing rains.

    A  report   said   feed producers  are  facing  a challenge  producing  cheap  products, blaming  it  on  acute shortage of raw materials, high import duty and prohibitive cost of energy.

    While   demand for the feeds has grown, feed manufacturers unable to satisfy the rising appetite and  that  the  mismatch between production and demand is worrying.

    According to him,  feed manufactures are faacing challenges, operating at half c1apacity and struggling to cover their costs.

    A  farmer, Mr Stephen  Oladipupo  said    the  abnormally high  price  of maize and soyabean have  pushed  the industry into  deep  crisis.

    This  is because  the  industry  required  thousands  of   feed mixtures and supplements, but  that  the  country is  unable to produce it  because  it  had to import some of the raw materials such  as   fishmeal, cereal bran, fishmeal, oil seed cakes and feed premixes to bolster production.

    Currently, the poultry industry is the largest consumer of livestock feeds, accounted for more  50 percent of the national feed production including chick and duck mash, growers mash, layers mash, broiler starter and broiler finisher.

    At present, the key challenges faced by the poultry industry are high feed cost.

    In the last two years, the industry has been facing severe crisis due to abnormal increase in the prices of feed ingredients (mainly maize and soyabean) and led to an increase in the cost of production.

  • ‘Why govt revamped Songhai Delta’

    Delta State Deputy Governor, Prof. Amos Utuama, has said the state owned integrated agro-based company, Songhai Delta, Amukpe, has come to occupy its proper place as a driver of the socio-economic programmes of the Delta State government.

    Utuama who stated this during his official working visit to the revamped company in Sapele Local Government Area, Delta State, noted that the agro-based company was established by former Governor of Delta State, Chief James Ibori with the aim of creating employment and thereby alleviating poverty among the people as well as impacting the youths with skill acquisition in the different departments of agriculture.

    The deputy governor in the company of some other top government functionaries inspected some of the revamped units at Songhai Delta, which include Grass cutters units, Piggery, Quails, Broilers, Fish Ponds and Snail units.

    Other units also inspected are the Hatchery, Pastry and Milk processing, Soya Beans processing as well as the Feed Mill Units.

    He noted that the state government decided to revamped the company to enable it carry out its original vision in the development of the economy of Delta State in generating employment, food security as well as providing training and boosting of tourism.

    “Today, we have come to witness the turn around of Songhai Delta Amukpe. It is a complete turn around. From what I can see, from the physical environment to the revival of the different units, we can see that Songhai Delta is standing strong.

    “We all can see that Songhai Delta Amukpe has come to occupy its proper place as a driver of the socio-economic programme of Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, the Governor of Delta State,” Utuama said.

    Utuama who commended the Executive Consultant as well as the Amukpe community for the co-operation in ensuring peace and harmony, asserted that the state government would continue to diversify the non-oil economy of the state and develop other non-oil sector to create employment for the youths and wealth for all.

    He used the occasion to commend the over 300 hundred Industrial Trainee (IT) students from the different universities in the country for taking the advantage of being part of the Songhai vision.

    “I want to appeal to you our great Nigeria students that, the experience you are gaining here should see you through life. Do not pass through this company without gaining one or two things from it. It is not every one of you that have the opportunity to be at Songhai Amukpe. If you position yourself well and exert the opportunity of the training given to you here, you will find that you will be part of the Songhai Amukpe miracle of restoration,” Utuama asserted.

    His Royal Majesty, Orhue 1, the Orodje of Okpe Kingdom, represented by the District Head, Amukpe Community, Chief Peter Asagba, while commending the state governor and his deputy for revamping the Songhai Delta Amukpe programme, appealed for the maintenance of roads leading to the Amukpe market which serve as a major market to the various communities.

     

     

  • Cocoa farmers’ many challenges

    Cocoa farmers’ many challenges

    Nigeria and other West African countries supply two-thirds of the world’s cocoa. But getting  the benefits to trickle down to local  farmers is challenge, writes DANIEL ESSIET.

    Bernard Ukata (not real name) owns a three-hectare  cocoa farm in Edo State. He inherited the farm from his father and applied the farming techniques he learnt from his father . He spends an average of N350,000 annually to maintain one of the three hectares .

    Although he is known as one of the most experienced farmers in his community, he has never achieved the expected yield. He works  hard, but continuesto struggle to maintain the farm and protect it against pests and diseases’ attack.

    He employs good agricultural, environmental and social techniques as strategies. At the end, he sells his produce for export and makes about $3,500 per tonne, hardly making  good profit. Hampered by his limited bargaining power with cocoa buyers, Ukata and other farmers are  forced  to accept whatever price they are offered at the farm gate.

    Low cocoa prices, combined with poor productivity and vulnerability to price downturns in volatile commodity markets, often make Ukata and others struggle to make enough income to cover production costs. Ukata is one of the several thousands of farmers, who have   taken   to  cocoa production  because  of  the  reported  good  earnings  from its export, but only to discover  that it was not  as easy as they thought.

    Speaking with The Nation, the Chief Executive, Centre for Cocoa Initiatives, Mr Robo Adhuze said the  cocoa sector is facing sustainability crisis.

    Cocoa farmers, according to him,  face challenges that make it difficult for them to realise the true potential of cocoa farming. The fragile nature of cocoa tree makes it vulnerable to pests and diseases. Each year, farmers lose between 30 per cent to 100 per cent of their cocoa farm to pests and diseases. The limited number of improved seeds or planting material also means that farmers are harvesting from old trees that  produce low yields.

    The limited knowledge of new, more efficient farming techniques has reduced crop yields and incomes, just as lack of organisation among farmers’ groups has limited their ability to purchase supplies at a lower cost. It has equally hampered them from accessing helpful market information and secure better prices for their produce.

    Cocoa, he explained,  is still nursed in primitively as against mechanised way. Farmers’ families work together with varying roles from planting  seedlings, clearing the forest canopy, pruning and watching over the trees, to harvesting and breaking the pods, fermenting the seeds and drying the beans. Other tasks include ferrying the dried cocoa beans bags on their backs  to the buyers, which may be some kilometres  away.

    Experts said the booming consumption in Asia  is expected to increase the demand for cocoa in the $100 billion chocolate industry by about one  million tonnes, or around a quarter of world’s production by 2020.

    Adhuze said while it is difficult  for small farmers to cope with the influence of chocolate companies  in  dictating the prices of cocoa,   majority of them work on small farms of not more than two hectares, which are too small to guarantee better returns.

    According  to  him, cocoa prices are being dictated by the global chocolate industry.

    The farmers, he  said, have little chances of getting a fair price for their produce if they don’t know how much other markets beyond their villages are willing to pay.

    Since income from cocoa farming is generally low and unpredictable farmers are finding it difficult to invest in their farms and businesses.

    Consequently, he said, there is  need for the industry to  work out methods to  protect small farmers.

    Calling for   fair pricing, he stressed the need to link the chocolate manufacturers directly with cocoa growers and allow messages about techniques and labour rights to be more easily discussed and monitored.

    The President, Federation of Agricultural Commodity Association of Nigeria (FACAN), Dr Victor Iyama said when an average world commodity prices rise, profits tend to go mostly to large trading companies, not to the small-scale farmers.

    He  added  that poor farmers don’t profit from price gyrations on the world market since they must sell at harvest because they can’t afford to stockpile. Most profits go to middlemen and traders.

    He said local farmers are being exploited by the foreign chocolate companies. These companies through agents purchase cocoa from farmers at a set price, distribute and sell it on the world market. This has left small farmers directly at the mercy of world market prices.

    According to experts, the cocoa future market, originally set up for large chocolate companies could guarantee their input prices for a season. To them, it has become an important commodities’ market where most of the trading are carried out purely on speculation. The result, according to them, has seen larger and more rapid price movements, which are extremely difficult for the small farmers to bear.

    According to the Programme Coordinator, Farmers Development Union(FADU), Mr Victor Olowe,  farmers  are paid poorly for cocoa they harvest, carrying heavy loads, using machetes to clear their land and inhale harmful pesticides in their daily work schedule.

    Pesticides are commonly used to control bugs and viruses that harm the cocoa plant.  Most of the farmers use pesticides, which have been found to cause headaches, nausea, diarrhea, liver and kidney complications and cancer.

    According to him, cocoa farmers  live in poverty as prices paid to them by buyers are often incredibly low.

    He noted that his organisation was making effort to get  premium prices for cocoa farmers.

    In the words of Olowe, farmers, who have  gone  through certification programmes would receive higher prices than conventional ones.

    On the whole, Olowe said fair trade standards support farmers’ long-term development by fostering strong producer organisations, sustainable farming practices and social compliance.

    As a requirement, he said, cocoa producers must meet all core criteria, but can prioritise the development criterion that is most important to them.

    Through  such  a training, he  said,   farmers improve productivity and quality; have a sustainable tree and pest management; anti-child labour and environmental protection.

    For transformational change to come to the cocoa sector, the  President, Association of  Small business Owners of  Nigeria(ASBON), Dr  Femi Egbesola  said it would involve the participation of all actors.

    According to him, there should be  a renewed interest in shoring up agriculture as an avenue for economic growth and, more broadly, for development of the continent. He  said  the  government  must invest in small cocoa farmers and not the big ones.

    He  believed  a total revamp of the agricultural sector would bring about a return to the old days when Nigeria  was producing enough to feed herself, and agriculture contributed about 40 per cent  of the country’s foreign exchange earnings through exports.

    Analysts say it is practically impossible for farmers to meet the target of tripling output to 500,000 tonnes by 2020 given the situation of things because  trees require six years to hit the peak in production.

    Meanwhile, the  Nigerian British Chamber of Commerce(NBCC), has blamed the bad image given locally produced cocoa in the world market, on activities of the get-rich-quick exporters.

    Speaking at the launch of the Ondo Kingdom Chamber of Commerce (OKCC), NBCC President, Prince Yemi Adefulu, said standardisation and quality control were thrown out of the window when the marketing boards were scrapped. The country, he noted,  has not recovered from the reputation damage arising from the misdemeanor.

    “Nigeria earned a reputation for poor quality from which we suffer to this day. Prices of Nigerian cocoa crashed and farmers became discouraged and lost the incentive to plant new cocoa seedlings or expand existing plantations. Consequently, many abandoned the farms.

    We are probably now the 10th producer of cocoa in the world. It is, however, not only farmers and cocoa merchants who suffered, the local economy which was buoyant in the days of the cocoa boom became dislocated,” he said.

    He added: “Traders, transporters, labourers, the local government, the state and the nation all suffered in the process. But the greatest loss of all was the reputation damage.”

    According to him, such a calamity could have been avoided if there was an effective Chamber of Commerce in Ondo State. Every major step which changed history, according to him, was be an appropriate and timely  response to a challenge.

    He said: “It could have fought the abandonment of standards and if the government did not listen,  it could have created and established an Ondo Standards, which if well protected and projected, could have become a recognised global standard of quality.

    “There are chambers of commerce, which issue export documentations and help to authenticate standards. It is all part of being the watch-dog of the concerns and interests of the business community and reaching to government at the highest levels and affecting trade policy development.”

    He said a properly managed Ondo should be exporting cocoa butter, creams, chocolates and other cocoa based products from cottage industries.

  • Farmers bemoan market sshare loss to East Africa

    Nigerian  farmers  are losing their market share to their East African counterparts, Secretary, South-South Apex Farmers Association (SAFA), Mr. Alphonsus Inyang, has said.

    Speaking in Uyo during a two-day workshop of the association, he said lack of coordination  of   farming activities in the country is the reason for the loss of market share currently suffered by local   farmers.

    Inyang said one of the biggest food chain firms in the country imports apple, plantain, water leaves, vegetables and banana from Ethiopia, Cameroun and some other East and Central African countries.

    According to him, the firm resorted to importation of the produce since it could not get farmers that were willing to coordinate their activities with a view to meeting their orders.

    He said: “The food chain firm in question, right now buys apple, plantain, water leaf, vegetable and banana from Ethiopia, Congo, Cameroun and from some other East and Central Africa countries. As our farmers have not been properly coordinated, these things are likely to continue to happen in the country.”

    Inyang observed that farmers here cultivate and make losses because their areas of farming have not been properly identified and coordinated. In other words, they farm without information and the use of latest technology.

    He said: “There are certain chemicals that Shoprite gives to their suppliers to spray on plantain. These chemicals can preserve the plantain from two weeks to two months without going black. This happens because the farmers are coordinated.

    “So, these are the areas that we at SAFA want to enlighten our farmers on. They need to know the areas they should invest in.”

    He urged government to encourage farmers in the country by granting those loans and mop up their excess produce. This, he said will encourage and enable them operate profitably.

    He said it is regrettable that farmers in the South-South region continue to operate on small scales, which makes them miss out on some important aids that would have come their way.

    “This is why SAFA is here to encourage small farmers to grow gradually by getting them involved in government programmes’ for possible assistance,” he added.

    He said the association would organise training and capacity building for farmers. This, he noted will serve as a bridge between the farmers and the government to enable farmers assess government’s programmes and gain market for their produce.

    Inyang stated that the roles of government in agricultural programmes’ are important especially during the month of September where farmers will begin to bury crates of eggs to prevent under pricing of their produce.

    He said: “We need government to assist us; like buying eggs at market price from us and then distribute them at affordable price to citizens to save us from huge losses.

    “If you move from one poultry farm to the other, there is no market. Between the months of May to September each year, poultry farmers in Akwa Ibom State usually dig and bury their eggs in the ground, this is painful.”

    Its Chairman, Dr. George Ikpot, who was represented by a member, Board of Trustees, Mr. Godwin Udom, stated that SAFA will work with farmers and develop their capacity to attain maximum returns on their investment.

  • Concerns mount over foreigners’ acquisition of farmlands

    A surge in the purchase of land,  agro businesses to grow food and other crops for export  in  various parts of the  country  has raised concerns.

    Attracted by high economic growth rates and propelled by a lack of new opportunities, huge global food and agriculture companies are working to gain access to vast areas of land in Nigeria.

    This    follows   growing demand for food production and agriculture-related industrial products. While  some  watchers believe foreign  companies  coming  to  establish large scale  agribusinesses  would  boost food  production, others are of the opinion it  could severely  impair the ability  of  local  farmers to feed themselves.

    One  of these is  the President, National Cashew Association of Nigeria (NCAN), Tola Faseru.

    He  sees this differently.

    Speaking  with The Nation, Faseru   said there is heightened concern about food security in the face of a growing  population.

    This,he  said,  required cultivation of  more  land  for  food production.

    He explained that the nation has 84 million area of arable land and only 40 percent is being utilised.

    For this reason, he said the nation needs foreign investment.

    Faseru  said   that   foreign land acquisitions would raise food production and broaden economic growth.