The Nation Newspaper

Category: Agriculture

  • Expert to govt: reposition crop insurance scheme

    The Federal Government has been urged to reposition the crop insurance scheme to ameliorate losses that farmers incur from flood, drought and plant diseases.

    An expert, Prof Ayo Ogunlela, gave the advice during an interview with The Nation.

    Ogunlela, who is a professor of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering at the University of Ilorin, said significant changes in weather could increase drought and flood in some parts of the country, as such farmers need to be protected.

    According to him, excessive rainfall and fluctuating temperatures could offer lead to seedling diseases on the farms.

    He is concerned that rainfall extremes that only occur at most a few times yearly, could have very large impact, adding that agriculture and farmers should be the priority of the government as improving their condition is a must to strengthen the economy.

    For experts, like him during critical crop growth stages, too many days without rain can reduce yields or lead to crop failure, which can reverberate through the agriculture-dependent economy. Also, short periods of very heavy rainfall can create disasters.

    To spur agricultural growth, Ogunlela asked the government to launch a comprehensive plan to provide a ‘Soil health card’ to all farmers across the country. The card will carry crop-wise recommendations of nutrients/fertiliser required for farms, making it possible for farmers to improve productivity by wisely using input.

    He said there should be computerised systems in local agriculture science centres to keep data of ‘soil test’ results, adding that thess will make the easy collection of oil samples from small farms in remote villages.

    The system will allow farmers to download the card using ‘unique number’ allotted to each soil sample. This way, any change in ownership of the particular farm land, will not create any problem in getting such cards or getting it updated, he added.

    He further said the move would help farmers in identifying ‘health of the soil’ which will go a long way in improving productivity through judicious use of fertiliser and water.

    Since collecting ‘soil samples’ and uploading/updating the test results will be a mammoth exercise, states will deploy students of agriculture universities in doing this, he said.

    All soil samples will be tested in various soil testing labs across the country. Thereafter, experts will analyse the strength and weaknesses (micro-nutrients deficiency) of the soil and suggest measures to deal with it. The result and suggestion will be displayed in the cards.

  • Vegetable growers set to tackle food challenge

    Vegetable growers set to tackle food challenge

    What started as small gardens for some vegetable farmers may become a major foreign exchange earner,  Prof. Durodoluwa Oyedele has said.

    Oyedele, who is the Principal Investigator, Nigeria-Canada Underutilized Indigenous Vegetable Project (NICAN-VEG) Project, said if the government supports the efforts of bodies, such as NICAN-VEG, vegetable farmers and country as a whole would benefit immensely vegetable farming business.

    Speaking at a programme for vegetable farmers in the Southwest, tagged: ‘NICAN-VEG Farmers Field Day,’ at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, he said efforts by some  universities  in Nigeria and abroad  to stimulate local fruit and vegetable production is going to pay dividends, by ensuring ‘a steady rise in producers’ income.

    He noted  that local food producers are ready meet the food needs of a growing global population and called for support to explore the potential for agriculture to become  next great economic boom industry.

    According to him, vegetable growers have acknowledged challenges and are rising to meet them, with several new initiatives aimed at providing food for export.

    The vegetable industry, he maintained is to be empowered by several research and market development projects which aim to increase the export market for local grown produce.

    These initiatives, sponsored by his group will allow growers to rise to the challenges and achieve its potential as an exporting nation.

    He said NICAN-VEG project was dsigned to bring back indigenous vegetables to the dining tables by popularising their cultivation, marketing and consumption, and also to empower the rural women economically and reduce poverty through proceeds from sale of the vegetables.

    So far, he said the group is working with farmers to help them plant  high yielding vegetable crops that retailers need and link them with  large markets in key areas where they  can offload their produce and sell them directly to retailers.

    The three-year project, which has been a huge success, is coming to an end and the coordinator saw the need to sustain it; therefore they decided to give grants to the farmers group from different locations in the Southwest of Nigeria that are involved in the project.

    Oyedele said the body has lived up to the dreams of the sponsors by reviving indigenous vegetables, empower rural farmers especially women farmers. “What we did was to develop new technology in planting vegetables; we had to domesticate this using improved technology. We introduced the technology to the farmers by working with the farmers to develop the technologies, we empowered the farmers with various inputs, such as irrigation, equipments and farmers have now imbibed the technology,” he said.

    He explained that they had to give out loans to farmers’ groups because the project was coming to an end and there was the need to sustain it. He said: “We are giving them sustaining loan, a soft loan so that they can use that to sustain the planting.”

    Oyedele predicted that in the next 10 years, vegetable farmers would move from cultivation to packaging and exporting.  “We are looking at post harvest technology, packaging and developing channel linking the farmers with buyers,” he said.

    He expressed optimism that vegetable business would continue to grow in Nigeria considering the existence of large groceries market, saying, “ these ones, need vegetables that are fresh at all times. What we are doing is trying to link these farmers to them. And to do that, we still have to train the farmers. It is not that you will get to the store, you will get the quality today, and tomorrow you will get different quality. We have trained the farmers to produce same quality and in 10 years we are looking at farmers being able to supply through their cooperatives, particularly to the supermarket and exporting.”

    At the well-attended event, the vegetable farmers’ groups were presented with cheques which would help them in their farming ventures. It was another opportunity for these farmers to share their experiences since they were introduced to NICAN-VEG project.

    The programme has not only exposed farmers to new technology in vegetable preservation, it also assisted them in having the opportunity to discuss ways to solve problems facing the vegetable farmers. Aside NICAN-VEG project assisting areas in areas such as irrigation, seedlings, the programme has had positive effects on farmers as it helps the farmers to prepare the land, make available good while the proceeds from the farm automatically become that of the farmer.

    A beneficiary, Iya Omidiora said she got pumping machine, Storex tank, seeds and technical supports, especially in the area of applying fertiliser to the soil.

    Pa Oyedele, a retired teacher who could be in his 70s, said he had benefited immensely from the project. Before he NICAN-VEG project has really helped him, though he complained that marketing remains a challenge.

    NICANVEG is an IDRC/CIDA sponsored project through the Canadian International Food Security Research Fund (CIFSRF). The project conducts rural women farmers to participate in agronomic experiments, marketing and value addition studies, nutritional and economic analyses with researchers. The goal is to provide tools for better production, processing, and marketing of these locally important vegetables.

  • Minister urges parastatals to embrace research, development

    Minister urges parastatals to embrace research, development

    The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. AkinwumiAdesina,has charged parastatals and institutes under the ministry to develop new products through Research and Development (R&D).

    At a meeting, in Abuja, held with chairmen of boards and chief executives of parastatals, under the ministry, the Minister asked them to use viable technologies to develop products for commercialisation, instead of leaving them on the shelves.

    Adesina directed them to have a compelling vision on how to achieve the mandates of their institutions in line with the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA) of the ministry.

    The Minister emphasised the need for research institutes and all universities of agriculture to collaborate in R&D, and production of annual R&D reports, and observing annual R&D week for the purpose of discussion and dissemination of reports on new developments and products. He said: “If you can take our technologies to scale, from the scaling, you can find the amount needed and even convince donors to help.”

    To enable his ministry keep track of the activities of the parastatals and make government very successful,  Adesina directed all the parastatals institutes and colleges of agriculture to  submit quarterly reports to his office. The Minister, however, pledged his readiness to devise a means of providing for more funding, to enable the parastatals and institutes deliver on their mandates.

    The Chairman, Governing Board of National Root Crops research Institute, Umudike, Chief Oluwole Aina, on behalf of the Agric research council of Nigeria (ARCN), called on government to consider timely funding for agriculture because it is a seasonal activity. He said funding should be made available when it would be useful to the farmer.

     

  • LACOWA elects president

    Members of the Lagos State Cooperative Women Alliance (LACOWA) have elected Mrs Christiana Oluremi Famoroti as their first president.

    The election and inauguration, which held at Igando-Ikotun Local Council Development Area (LCDA) saw Mrs Oluremi and other 14 officials elected by affirmation following her role as the Lagos State Coordinator of LACOWA.

    National President, Nigerian Cooperative Women Alliance (NACOWA), Mrs Esther Bassey Eka, who led the national entourage to the event, advised the new officials to live up to expectation.

    “Am happy for you people today because you are here to work. I look forward for you people to make change and manage things well. If you are coming for money, the door is open for you to go.

    “I advise you today not to disrespect your husband regarding your position. Let love supersede everything in your house and also help the needy and the poor.” he said.

    Speaking with The Nation, the new President, Mr Christiana Famoroti, said she will work harder with other officials to empower the people.

    He said: “The journey so far has been very hectic because we started with two gentlemen and I but glory be to God today. I promise to work beyond expectation and harder with my officials in terms of empowerment.”

    Mrs  Eka declared the new president as the national and International Affairs Coordinator to join her entourage at the national level.

    She added: ‘’The programme we are carrying out today will no doubt positively impact on the capital assets of the vulnerable rice farmers and assist them in constructing a more sustainable livelihood.’’

  • Flood-resistant rice to the rescue

    Flood-resistant rice to the rescue

    Floods ravaged many parts of the country last year, destroying crops and livestock. To  help farmers, the Japanese government, working with the National Cereals Research Institute (NCRI) in Niger State, is distributing flood-resistant rice seeds to farmers. DANIEL ESSIET reports.

    With sea levels rising and weather conditions worsening, plant scientists continue to search for ways to save agricultural plants from environmental threats to sustain food supply.

    Countries are in need of crop varieties that can tolerate higher temperature and drought, survive prolonged flooding and soil salinity.

    Being the primary staple food of 70 per cent of the population, the demand for rice has increased astronomically over the years. However, rice variety grown within the country is prone to flooding.

    This is also because there are many farms close to rivers, marshes and swamps across the country.

    With the flooding last year, rice shortage was a major threat which the government struggled to avert.

    This is because the massive flooding destroyed large parcels of rice farmland in the North and some part of the middle belt, opening the possibility of higher prices and leaving the region at greater risk of a food price shock.

    For experts, the scale of the floods was unprecedented, so was its  threat on regional food security.

    Therefore, the development of rice seeds that are resistant to floods and droughts is wellcome development  to farmers.

    The  good news  is  coming  from scientists at the National Cereals Research  Institute (NCRI), Badeggi, Niger State.

    Hoping to help farmers adapt to the vagaries of climate change, the  scientists  developed rice seeds that are resistant to droughts and floods, the twin scourges that annually threaten the livelihoods of poor farmers in the country as well as in lowland areas.

    Supported by the Japan Rice  Emergency Initiative (JERI) hosted by   foremost  rice  research  institute  in Africa, Africa Rice, Benin Republic, the scientists believe the new seeds will be a boon for famers suffering from the impacts of climate change.

    Speaking during the kick off of rice seeds to vulnerable farmers in Benue and Nasarawa states, in Lafia, NCRI Executive Director, Dr Mark Ukwungwu  said the   assistance  provided  by the Japanese government  through the  JERI 11 project would increase food security.

    He said the project kicked off in Nigeria with an awareness/ sensitisation meeting  with key players on rice  production in May last year at NCRI’s  headquarters.

    JERI11 project has a target of producing 60 certified seeds of faros 44,52 and 61 at wet and dry seasons.

    Working  with  the Federal  Government and the JICA, Ukwungwu said NCRI produced seeds  that  were purchased from it  and  distributed to seed outgrowers for  production.

    The foundation seeds, packed in 25 kg bags are to be distributed to each vulnerable rice farmer for multiplication on 0.5 hectare of land this year.

    At harvest ,each farmer will retrain 50 kg of certified  seed to be shared to other farmers  in his/her own community and keep the balance for personal  use.

    This way, he explained that more and more vulnerable farmers will be given the opportunity to use and produce quality seeds.

    To further assist the institute, Ukwungwu said Africa Rice has donated two milling machines, two power tillers and two threshers for the purpose of research.

    Coordinator, JERI11, NCRI, Dr Myimaorga Abo sees many farming families lifted out of rural poverty while the region will emerge as a leading area in rice cultivation.

    According to him, this is because for years, the communities  languished at the economic backwater, depending on growing subsistence crops.

    He said  there is tremendous effort to double domestic rice production. This has led to the establishment of rice sector development hubs to boost production.

    He said Benue and Nasarawa were selected for rain-fed lowland ecology. According to him, the rice sector development hubs are zones where  rice research outputs will be  integrated across  the rice value chain to achieve development outcomes and impact.

    Abo believes an evolving rice industry is laying the foundation for long-term economic vitality for the communities involved.

    While the institute is ready to provide field-tested rice lines that are tolerant to flooding, NCRI is  ready also to assist government agencies and private seed companies to multiply and distribute seeds to farmers at a faster pace.

    Commissioner for Agriculture and Water Resources, Nasarawa State, Danladi Usha Madaki said the government has put in so much effort towards shifting attention of farmers from using saved seeds as a major planting material to other unexplored areas byAgricultural Development Programmes(ADPs) and government Growth Enhancement Support (GES)to meet high productivity through transfer of Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) to farmers.

    He noted, however, that many farmers do not have access to improved quality rice seed due to poor road network, distance from selling point, high poverty level, non availability when it is needed and others which has posed a challenge to the use of quality rice seeds and which results in poor yield output at harvest.

    He commended the Japanese government, Africa Rice and NCRI for the initiative and discovering   this group of farmers to support with quality seed in the three states of Benue, Kano and Nasarawa.

    He added that effective transfer of rice farming knowledge on high quality seeds to farmers, particularly t across Nasarawa State where rice production has crucial role to play will reduce  poverty, hunger and bridge importation gap.

    He reiterated the commitment of the state government towards enhancing agricultural production and cultivation of rice.

    In 2010 cropping season, he said the total area put into rice production was 98,220 hectare with an average yield of 264,930 metric tonnes while in 2011, a total area put into rice was 115,100 hectares with an average yield of 305,900 metric tonnes.

    He said Emergency Rice Initiative II will help raise productivity and  achieve the goal of commercial rice production as envisaged under the Nigeria National Rice Development Strategy (NRDS).

    Regional Representative of Africa Rice Nigeria, Dr Francis Nwilene commended the Japanese government for financing Emergency Rice Initiative Project II.

    Represented by   Seed System Specialist, Dr  Gbenga Akinwale, Nwilene noted that JERI was designed to increase access of smallholder farmers to quality rice seeds.

    Nwilene maintained that seed is a critical and vital input essential to enhance productivity of rice.

    His said: ”It is estimated that the direct contribution of quality seed to the total crop production is about 15 – 20 per cent.  It is also estimated that for every 10per cent increase in farm yield due to the use of quality seed will result into seven per cent in poverty reduction in Africa and five per cent reduction in Asia. Quality seed not only increases productivity per unit area, but also helps to produce uniform crops without any mixtures which produce high milling recovery and better quality rice.

    Consequently, he said the rice transformation agenda was designed to optimise the use of seeds of wide range of agronomically superior high yielding stress tolerant rice varieties seeds, fertiliser and other best agricultural practices to achieve self-sufficiency in rice production.

    He said   Africa Rice is committed to poverty alleviation and food security in Africa, through research and development.

    Chief Representative, Japan International Cooperation Agency, Mr Tetsuo Seki said JICA is fully commitment to working with the Nigerian government to achieve its target of self-sufficiency in rice production by next year.

    He said his government with many other stakeholders within the Coalition for African Rice Development (CARI), aim to double rice production in Africa within a 10 year activity from 2008 to 2018. For Nigeria, the target is to increase paddy production from 3.4 million tonnes of paddy in 2007 to 13.27 million tonnes by the year 2018.

    He said Japan has been supporting the Japan Emergency Rice Initiative through AfricaRice since 2009.

    The objective of the initiative, he maintained is to boost rice production and reduce post-harvest losses in 25 sub-Saharan African countries through the distribution of rice seeds to vulnerable farmers.

    He called on the NCRI to make all efforts to raise the awareness of farmers and extension agents on the need to plant good quality seeds and build their capacity in all areas related to rice farming.

    He said the role of NCRI in general seed production and distribution system cannot be over emphasised.

    Deputy Director, Cereals and Desk Officer, Rice Value Chain, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Victor Ekezie Onyeneke  said  agricultural research and technologies  would  reduce vulnerability, when improved varieties of rice seeds and other inputs are made available to poor rice farmers.

    He expressed hope that JERI will   impact on vulnerable rice farmers and improve their livelihoods.

    For decades, rice makes up 80 per cent of every meal in the country. Thus, it’s a concern that the staple  is so vulnerable to elements.

    Recent events have shown that resilient varieties will continue to play a role in disaster risk reduction.

     

  • Rice farmers decry insecurity in Borno

    The Maisandari Rice Farmers Association in Borno said the Boko Haram insurgency has forced its members to abandon farming this year.

    The Chairman of the association, Malam Garba Ibrahim, stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Maisandari, Jere Local Government Area of the state.

    He said: “We are an association of big term rice farmers comprising about 200 members.

    “Each of us used to produce between 50 and 200 bags of rice per year.”

    He said the production had witnessed some decline due to the insurgency in the state.

    “We have witnessed steady decline in production in the last two years due to the insurgency.

    “Last year, most of our members were not able to produce for fear of attacks in the farm by suspected insurgents.”

    Ibrahim said the situation became worse this year as most of the farmers had abandoned the dry season farming due to insecurity.

    “This year, no farmer has been able to cultivate during the dry season due to the insecurity.

    “Although the state government has provided imported rice mills to our members in anticipation of massive production, insecurity had made it impossible for us to cultivate.”

    He appealed to the Federal Government to intensify its efforts in tackling the insurgency so that the farmers could go back to the farm.

    Meanwhile, the Jigawa chapter of the Rice Dealers Association of Nigeria, said it had concluded arrangements to establish six pilot rice trading centres in the state.

    The Chairman of the association, Alhaji Idris Ya’u, said in Hadejia, Jigawa, that the centres would be established in collaboration with the Federal Government.

    He said the government would spend about N12 million on each of the centres, while farmers’ association in each of the participating areas would contribute N600,000 to the project.

    “The Federal Government has also introduced a new 100-kg bag to ensure accuracy in the measurement of paddy rice,” he said.

    Ya’u explained that the gesture was to accelerate paddy rice production, enhance farmer enterprising skills and encourage competition.

    The chairman said that the trading centres would be sited at Auyo, Birninkudu, Hadejia, Kazaure, Kirikasamma and Ringim, all in Jigawa, and be equipped with processing and packaging equipment to add value to the produce.

    He added that officials of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture had already inspected the sites for the proposed trading centres.

    It would be recalled that the Federal Government, during the last dry season, distributed fertiliser, seeds and chemicals to 154,000 registered rice farmers under the Growth Enhancement Support (GES) programme.

     

    The government had also distributed mini harvesters, tractors, water pumps, tube wells, thrashers and Knapp sack sprayers to farmers in the state.

  • Cassava as driver of economic growth

    Cassava as driver of economic growth

    Given the increase in its production to meet rising demand from operators in the livestock feed, starch and bio fuel markets, cassava is gradually becoming a major cash crop and driver of industrial development. DANIEL ESSIET writes.

    A Few decades ago, cassava was not a major cash crop. But today, the story has changed. The crop is being transformed from a humble root crop into a money spinner of sort for farmers and a prized industrial input. Much of the turnaround in the fortunes of the crop is driven by increasing production and rising demand from the livestock feed, starch, and bio-fuel markets.

      The Nation learnt that because of the intervention on cassava under the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA) of the government, demand for cassava has grown so strong that those who traditionally engaged only in subsistence farming  grow cassava as a cash crop. This made cassava a dynamic cash crop, helping to drive industrial development while delivering higher incomes to small holder farmers.

    Addressing a Cassava Adding Value for Africa Stakeholders forum in Lagos, the Coordinator, Cassava Value Chain, ), Regional Hub for East Africa, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Tanzania, Dr. Adebayo Abass, said cassava has multiple uses and markets, ranging from on-farm consumption as food or livestock feed to local wet or dry starch processing enterprises and large-scale commercial operations. Besides, wet starch extraction and transformation has been the business of cassava trading clusters.

    Abass said there was a tremendous opportunity for the industry to create 30 million jobs across Africa. These opportunities, he said, arise from demand for cassava starch and chips, which are likely to increase strongly in local and international markets, signaling a bright future for the domestic cassava industry. He said cassava has a huge potential and could turn from ‘a poor people’s food into a 21st century crop’ if grown according to a new environment-friendly farming model.

    According to him, cassava yields have increased due to the planting of new high-yielding varieties and the adoption of more sustainable production practices across the continent and many factories have invested in the upgrade of their production technology. With tremendous support coming from the government, he predicts that demand for cassava would continue to increase, adding that the domestic market would also see high demand for cassava by-products as raw material for enterprises. He noted that cassava farming is a great business and that there is a huge market for the commodity, which could be grown in all parts of the country.

    The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, said the cassava transformation project seeks to create a new generation of cassava farmers oriented towards commercial production and farming as a business. H said the plan was to link them up to reliable demand either from processors or a guaranteed minimum price scheme of the government.

    Represented by the Technical Adviser (Cassava Value Chain), Mrs. Toyin Adetunji, the Minister said the overall strategy of the cassava transformation is to turn the cassava sector in Nigeria into a major player in local and international starch, sweeteners, ethanol, High Quality Cassava Flour (HQCF), and dried chips industries by adopting improved production and processing technologies, and organising producers and processors into efficient value-added chains. To  boost  domestic  production of  cassava bread, the minister  said  the  Federal Government has given the Bank of Industry (BoI) the mandate  to manage the N4.3 billion Cassava Bread Development Fund to support Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), master bakers and large industrial cassava flour mills.

    He further said the fund would also be used to support research and development efforts on cassava bread, training of master bakers, and support for master bakers for the acquisition of new equipment for production.

    The Minister earlier said in another forum that the Federal Government was to provide machines for the cultivation of 29,500 cassava farms. This would be funded from the Cassava Bread Development Fund managed by BoA.

    Adesina said cultivating the farms would cost N915 million. He said the government would supply 1,770,000 bundles of planting materials to the owners of the farms at the cost of N708 million. In addition, the government would supply 118,000 bags of cassava-specific fertiliser at N708million and 88,500 litres of herbicides at N88.5 million to the farmers.

    According to him, the farmers are to produce 59,000 metric tonnes of cassava roots in line with the transformation plan. Adesina said the ministry was facilitating the procurement of 22 medium-scale high quality plants of 60 metric tonnes capacity to meet the annual demand for high quality flour. He said the ministry was carrying out the enumeration of all farmers, including the cassava farmers with their bio-data for input into a database. The objective, he explained, is to have a baseline upon which levels of intervention could be measured in terms of outreach and impact. In 2012, he said 21,059 farmers benefitted from free 315,898 bundles of cassava stems, while in 2013, 1,546,720 bundles of improved stems were distributed to 64,000 cassava farmers for 25,779 hectares expected to yield 644,475 metric tonnes of roots.

    He reiterated government’s commitment to building robust fresh roots supply chains for cassava processing plants; supporting large/medium HQCF mills, SMEs producing HQCF and master bakers who use 20 per cent of HQCF in bread production. According to him, HQCF can be used as an alternative for starch and wheat flour in a variety of industries. These include raw materials for the production of glucose syrups, industrial alcohol, bakery products, and in the production of adhesives, as an extender for plywood glues and as a source of starch in textile sizing. He said efforts have been made to develope a simple and appropriate process for producing HQCF that is suitable for baking. This was tested in the baking and confectionary industries; it was found successful and the cost implications were favorable.

    For the Minister, the introduction of cassava starch in the food and non-food industries has transformed the cassava utilisation industry. This is because it is used as an ingredient in manufactured foods (infant foods, confectionary, glucose, alcohol) and in non- food industries (glues, oil well drilling, adhesives, paper sizing and bonding, textile sizing and strengthening).

    He  said  Nigeria  is  one of the leading  production  of  cassava in the  world  and that  production has witnessed a tremendous increase  following  the introduction of high-yielding, disease-resistant varieties.

    The Country Manager, Cassava Adding Value for Africa, and President, Nigerian Institute of Food Science and Technology (NIFST), Prof. Lateef Sanni, called on the government to pass the bill regulating the institute to guarantee food safety. Cassava, he  noted, is used as food, dried chips for feed, alcohol, and starch, and for industrial uses and is the staple food crop of the nation’s population. Under CAVA, he said there is a roadmap to increase the national average yield per hectare, taking cognizance of the bright financial prospect being offered by the cassava sector.

    The Project Director, CAVA 11, Dr Kola Adebayo, said Africa has shown remarkable success in cassava processing. This followed the introduction of machines for most unit operations to ease the labour-intensiveness of the trade. He said there are processors involved in producing traditional foods or intermediate products, such as chips, high quality cassava flour and starch.

    According to him, there are some exclusive cassava-based products being traded in countries served by CAVA project. Adebayo said the project  has  worked  to  encourage  local fabricators  in processing technology, adding  that  farmers  can  now  have  access to locally fabricated mechanized and high-capacity equipment to get involved in the  business. The project gives farmers the opportunity needed to develop and test an integrated approach that keeps the benefits of cassava production and processing in rural communities. For him, cassava trade is expanding quickly, particularly in response to burgeoning exports of dried cassava chips and starch to China.

    Experts believe the cassava boom largely depended on local processing of cassava into wet and dry starch, which is then transformed into higher value food and industrial products – from noodles, glucose, and maltose to textiles, pharmaceuticals, cardboard and glue. Also, crop varieties were tested along with improved production, soil erosion control practices – specifically better use of fertiliser.

    The new cassava varieties from IITA’s collaborative breeding efforts have been grown on   cassava areas where they have doubled average crop yields. Shortages of cassava roots is however still a challenge though the higher yielding varieties and cassava roots are sourced from IITA and other research institutes.

    Experts, however, said how much farmers benefit from increased cassava trade depends a lot on two things: how well they are linked to markets and how well they manage their crop.

  • Be committed to biotech research, Fed Govt urged

    The Federal Government has been urged to demonstrate  more   commitment  to biotech research, development and innovation (RDI) incentives as the sector  faces fresh challenges of producing  food to meet the demand of an increasing population.

    The Deputy National President (Administration and Operations), Prince Ike Ubaka, said biotechnology still remains a cornerstone of  the  agricultural  sector  in terms  of economic competitiveness.

    To help farmers achieve greater income, Ubaka told The  Nation that the  need  for  researchers to collaborate  with  farming  communities  to  produce through improved yields   that  can  be  accepted  within a locality.

    He  spoke on the need  to improve  extension services cover a broad range of skills and crops and to effectively support smallholders to grow almost anything.

    To commercialise farming, he   said  farmers  require good practice in crop production, post-harvest handling and a sound business model. This, he  said, the  extension service  should provide.

    Ubaka canvassed the provision of specialist extension services by the private sector to work to ensure farmers improve food security and the investments benefit women and small farmers as well as investors.

    To meet the food security needs of a growing population, he said the  government needs to forge stronger, more robust partnerships across sector and bring all necessary stakeholders together to meet the  challenge of  food  production.

    He said the battle to end hunger and poverty is achievable, but no one can do it alone, calling  for  collaboration to  bringing local connections, expertise, passion and private resources to ensure

    Small farmers have access to input, information and services they need to grow a better future.

    Chief Operating Officer, The Centre for Cocoa Development Initiative, Robo Adhuze, said providing  farmers with access to knowledge and affordable, quality agricultural input, would help them to grow a better future for their families and communities.

    He  said the  government  has made a tremendous progress to offer  input, seeds and other materials to  farmers in some value chains

  • Don makes case for national agric census

    A don, Dr Ademola Adeyemo,  has called on the Federal Government  to   conduct a  census of agriculture to provide a direction on what the nation has to provide the base on how  it can  achieve the dream of becoming  the food hub of West Africa.

    Adeyemo, the Deputy  Director, General Management Division, Agricultural and Rural Management and Training Institute (ARMTI),  said  a census would  provide data on agricultural holdings, such as farm size, land use, land tenure, livestock numbers, and the use of machinery, as well as crop and livestock distribution nationwide.

    With  the government urging  the  private sector to partner it to implement the agricultural transformation agenda (ATA),Adeyemo  said  the information provided by the census would  have many uses. These will  include information on agricultural produce that can be raised in Nigeria and where, how and by whom they were grown.

    The data, according to him,  will help the national, state and local government, farmers, ranchers, agribusiness and others make decisions.

    Compared to others, the don  said  the  census will provide  a uniform, comprehensive and impartial agriculture data down to the local  governments, adding that  it  would   help to shape programmes and initiatives that benefit young and beginning farmers and ranchers; expand access to resources that help women, and help farmers diversify into new markets, including local and regional food systems, specialty crops and organic production.

    With the government’s  effort  to boost food production, he said   there  is  need  for agricultural statistics to  monitor  and  reflect  current agricultural and food supply conditions and to provide information to help governments and others in short-term decision-making. To this end, he said agricultural statistics has  to  be  produced on a regular basis.

    One feature of a census of agriculture, he  explained, is that it involves the collection of data at the individual holding level.

    On crops, he  said the  census  will  provide data on where crops are planted, the number of holdings with each crop, the distribution of crop area, and the average crop area planted, among others.

    He  said  the census  provides the most reliable data available on production of crops and  a base for estimating crop area and production in the following years.

    He said a census of agriculture is one of the largest national statistical collections undertaken by a country.

    Right now, he  said, livestock production statistics are weak because of inadequate data, adding  that a  census can help in this regard.

  • How cassava industry can create three million jobs

    How cassava industry can create three million jobs

    The cassava industry can create three million jobs in Nigeria, the Coordinator, Cassava Value Chain, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Regional Hub for East Africa, Tanzania, Dr Adebayo Abass has said.

    Speaking with The Nation at the Cassava Adding Value for Africa (CAVA) Stakeholders forum in lagos, Abass said  there are  tremendous opportunities  for the industry to create 30 million jobs across Africa.

    These opportunities arise from demand for cassava starch and chips which is likely to increase strongly in local and international markets, auguring a bright future for the domestic cassava industry.

    He said cassava has a huge potential and could turn from “a poor people’s food into a 21st century crop” if grown according to a new environment – friendly farming model.

    According to him, cassava yields  have increased  due  to the planting of new high-yielding varieties and the adoption of more sustainable production practices across  the continent  and many factories have invested in the upgrade of their production technology.

    With tremendous support coming from the government, he said demand for cassava  would continue to increase, adding that the domestic market would also see high demand for the products  from cassava as raw material for enterprises.

    He noted that cassava farming is a great business and that there is a huge market for  the commodity and can be grown in all parts of the country.

    Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr AkinwumiAdesina said the  cassava transformation project seeks to create a new generation of cassava farmers, oriented towards commercial production and farming as a business, and to link them up to reliable demand, either from processors or a guaranteed minimum price scheme of the government.

    Represented by the Technical Adviser (Cassava Value Chain), Mrs Toyin Adetunji said the  over reaching strategy of the cassava transformation is to turn the cassava sector in Nigeria into a major player in local and international starch, sweeteners, ethanol, HQCF, and dried chips industries by adopting improved production and processing technologies, and organizing producers and processors into efficient value-added chains.

    To boost domestic production of cassava bread, the minister said the  Federal Government, has given the Bank of Industry (BoI) the mandate to manage the N4.3 billion cassava bread fund to support small and medium enterprises (SMEs), master bakers and large industrial cassava flour mills.

    He further said that the Cassava Bread Development Fund would also be used to support research and development efforts on cassava bread, training of master bakers, support for master bakers for the acquisition of new equipment for production.

    The Country Manager, Cassava: Adding Value for Africa, and President, Nigerian Institute of Food Science and Technology (NIFST), Prof. Lateef Sanni, called on the government to pass the bill regulating the institute to guarantee food  safety.

    Cassava, he noted is used as food, dried chips for feed, alcohol, and starch, and for industrial uses and is the staple food crop of the nation’s population.

    Under CAVA, he said there is a roadmap,to increase the national average yield per hectare, taking cognisance of the bright financial prospect being offered by the cassava sector to the economy.