Category: Agriculture

To guarantee food security, crop protection expert, Dr Daniel Gwary has called on the government to check the destructive impact of invasive insects on crops.

Gwary, who is of the Department of Crop Protection, University of Maiduguri, Borno State, made the call in the light of the changes caused by climate change, adding that the effects of these insects on crops and food stuffs are now more acute.

Speaking with The Nation, Gwary cited the devasting floods that ravaged some geopolitical regions of the country as an example, saying that faming communities have been affected.

He said the floods have in its wake acted as a transportation agent for some of these insects

He said there is need for more surveillance to stop such invasive species from entering the country as they could cause massive crop damage.

According to him, many species are carried into the country by people who are either unaware of the laws or are trying to beat them.

He said fruits, vegetables and spices tainted with insects or infections, could destroy crops.

According to him, the insects target farms and agricultural regions, and that the climate change make it easy for foreign species to survive and reproduce in their new homes.

He said the government needs to put plant and insect scientists along customs officers at the borders to stop the country’s exposure to destructive insects and infections.

He said plant-protection professionals have to be sent to identified pest-stricken areas.

According to him, farmers are likely to confront more aggressive and invasive insects with increased use of herbicides, insecticides, and fungicides. Where increases in water and chemical inputs become necessary, he said this will increase costs for the farmer.

The Northern region suffers from food insecurity issues, including locusts which invade the area threatening local agriculture and intensifying food shortage crisis.

According to him, locusts also pose a threat to crops as they can migrate over huge distances.

He said there is a high risk when the number of locust increases. ‘’If they aren’t controlled, the locusts could move across the region. If nothing is done,’’ he said, ‘’there is the potential for another plague.’’

He said the governments in the North mobilised teams into the remote locust areas to control the spread, adding that campaigns are carried out to help the affected areas.

The Emir of Bauchi, Malam Rilwanu Suleiman, has called on agricultural engineers to give priority to the needs of small scale farmers.

He made the call when he received members of the Nigerian Institution of Agriculture Engineers in his palace.

He said such attention would boost the transformation agenda in the sector.

The Emir, who was represented by the Galadiman Bauchi, Alhaji Saidu Ibrahim, said the small scale farmers need agric engineering infrastructure.

“As a farmer, I sometimes find it difficult to find capable hands to take care of the machinery in my farm. I have to leave the farm which is far from the town to come and look for mechanics when there is a breakdown.

“’I think these are areas which agriculture engineers should look at, address them and ease the challenges faced by small farmers in their quest to go universal,’’ he said.

He added that the level of food availability and value additions would be improved if necessary measures are taken by the government and other stakeholders in the sector.

In his remark, the Minister of State for Agriculture, Alhaji Bukar Tijjani, said the Goodluck Jonathan administration was committed to uplifting the standard of living of Nigerians through agriculture.

The minister, who was represented by Alhaji Mohammad Yusuf, a Director in the Agriculture Ministry, said the members of the institution would dwell on ways of implementing the government’s agenda.

He said it was the desire of members to see that the agricultural value chain was maximised to the benefit of farmers.

he Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has launched 20 vans for meat haulage. Speaking on the occasion in Karu, the Minister of State for FCT, Ms Olajumoke Akinjide, said the project represents the first phase of the FCT meat haulage programme aimed at ensuring hygienic meat consumption.

Ms. Akinjide, who was represented by the Secretary, Agriculture and Rural Development Secretariat, Mrs Olvadi Madayi, said: “The importance of consuming hygienic food in improving the quality of life of the populace cannot be over emphasised; meat being a perishable product, must be handled right or it may endanger public health.

“This administration views the existing way of transporting meat in rickety vehicles, motorcycles among others with disdain hence the launching of this pilot scheme with 20 vehicles.”

Ms Akinjide said because of the number of animal slaughter centres in the territory, there was a need to expand the pilot scheme to cover the entire slaughtering points.

She said the programme was being operated under Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement and called on interested individuals and organisations to participate in the venture.

The minister said the specified vehicles for transporting meat are dedicated meat vans and tricycles with a meat haulage compartment.

She said the internal coverings of the meat compartment of the vehicles must be made of stainless steel sheets to ensure non-metal contamination of meat in line with NAFDAC standards.

Ms Akinjide said the administration had concluded arrangements with a private investor to build and operate an ultra-modern abattoir in TunganMaje.

“This abattoir when operational will serve the Federal capital city and introduce meat processing and packaging in the territory,’’ she said.

The Minister called on stakeholders, such as NAFDAC, Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB), Nigeria Police Force, and Federal Road Safety Commission, among others, to assist in the enforcement of the meat haulage policy.

Earlier in her speech, Mrs Madayi, who was represented by the Director of Administration and Finance, Mr John Obiahu, said the programme was being operated by her office and Lead Automobile Company.

“Lead Automobile Company Ltd has been an important key player in the meat Haulage policy actualisation and the company made substantial input to the formulation of the policy,’’ she said.

Dr Joseph Nyager, the Director, Federal Livestock Department, said the transformation in the livestock sub-sector was aimed at developing the value chains in key livestock commodities of beef, dairy, poultry, leather, small ruminants and pigs.

He said the launching of the FCT meat haulage programme was in line with the beef value chain initiative of the livestock transformation agenda.

According to him, the socio-economic importance of abattoir development, hygienic meat processing and distribution cannot be over emphasised.

“Hygienic meat processing and distribution will go a long way in improving the supply of safe and wholesome meat and meat products.

“It will also facilitate local, inter-state and foreign trade in meat and meat products,’’ Nyager said.

He said the initiative would also strengthen disease surveillance, improve data collection on prevailing animal diseases, generate employment and create wealth for the teeming youths in the FCT.

An expert in animal production, Professor Abiodun Adeloye, has warned poultry producers against stocking more birds than they can carry. Speaking with The Nation, Adeloye, of the Department of Animal Production,University of Ilorin(UNILORIN), said overstocking of poultry production units with birds could affect their health.

It affects chickens raised for eggs known as laying hens and those raised for meat called broilers. Stocking density is a measure of how many chickens of a certain size are put in a house, given its size.

He said keeping a small number of broilers within a reasonable space provides for better body development, while congesting them encourages cannibalism and spread of diseases.

Adeloye said broilers could die in rearing houses as a result of painful and distressing conditions.

He said broiler chickens are susceptible to a significant number of health problems that can compromise their welfare. He added that the necessary measures are often ignored because of the financial implications.

According to him, breeding which causes very poor welfare should not be permitted. Though there is no legal upper limit on stocking densities, he called for changes in breeding and management practices.

One of the issues under consideration at the international poultry industry is stocking density. Stocking density has major economic implications for the broiler industry as higher profits can be obtained when more animals are housed under one roof.

However, as profits increase, the welfare of the animals may decline. One of the most heated debates regarding broiler welfare is what should be the maximum density permitted to ensure bird welfare.

No fewer than 200 unemployed youth in the Southwest have been trained by the Federal College of Animal Health and Production Technology, Ibadan, Oyo State.

The training centres on poultry and fish production, processing and other agricultural businesses.

Opening the training, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina, represented by Dr Usman Ahmed, said it was in line with President Goodluck Jonathan’s Agriculture Transformation Action Plan(ATAP), meant to reverse the over dependent on oil and create 3.5 million jobs in the next four years.

Adesina noted that the society does not respect agriculture and discourage their children from studying any agricultural related fields.

He said the government is determined to reposition agriculture to boost food security, create jobs and contribute to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

“The over dependence of Nigeria on oil exports as main source of national revenue has been an embarrassment over the years, so also the failure to maximize our agricultural potentials despite availability of vast arable land and human resource, with massive unemployment put at 40 per cent for the youth segment of the population” Akinwumi said.

He urged the participants to be ambassadors of the campaign for food for all and see agriculture now as a business.

He called on states and local governments to promote agriculture through loans, land and fertiliser.

In his opening remarks, the Provost of the college, Dr Ademola Raji, said the vocational training is important now that the nation is striving to achieve food security.

He said the programme was laudable since it will not only improve food sufficiency but create needed jobs.

According to him, the training will introduce participants into modern techniques in poultry, sheep,goat and fishery production, which will lead to employment generation, wealth creation, poverty reduction and improved standard of living.

Women farmers in Kogi State under the aegis of ‘Women In Agriculture (WIA), have called on the government and non- governmental organisations (NGOs) to assist them access land, credit and technical skills.

The President, WIA, Kogi chapter, Mrs Esther Audu, made the call in Lokoja.

Mrs Audu said the vision of the body was to empower women to engage in sustainable agriculture through capacity building and advocacy for their rights, especially to land and food security, adding that women needed support.

She contended that the vast majority of the world’s poor were women; two-third of the world illiterates were female just as the majority of school-age children currently out of school were girls. She added: “Today, HIV/AIDS is becoming a woman’s disease.”

The WIA president, therefore, urged the government to strengthen women and other farmers’ cooperative organisations by facilitating their expansion while creating favourable business, legal and social climate for them to thrive.

Earlier, the Project Officer of ActionAid Nigeria, Mr Victor Adejoh, said over 100 smaller women farmers groups from 11 communities in Kogi, trained and supported by the organisation, had registered with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry as cooperative groups.

Of the estimated 925 million hungry people in the world, Adejoh said 70 per cent lived in rural areas, adding that the 2012 World Food Day beamed its light on agricultural cooperatives in view of its capacity to reduce poverty and hunger. “It is estimated that one billion individuals are members of cooperatives worldwide generating more than 100 million jobs around the world in agriculture, forestry, fishing and livestock, giving themselves better bargaining power.”

The project officer urged farmers to join already existing cooperative groups rather than forming new ones, to enable them to derive maximum benefits and ease administrative problems.

The President, Smallholder Women Farmers Association of Nigeria, Mrs Elizabeth James said the association had been constrained by the dearth of farm inputs, processing machines and mobility.

Increasing rice production will help keep the poor fed, consultant to the Lagos State Government on Rice Projects Dr Rotimi Fashola has said.

Speaking with The Nation, Fashola said millions of people eat rice because it is cheaper.

He said it was possible for Nigerians to buy more rice with the same income than other staples.

According to him, when the domestic market is opened, cheap imported rice flood the market, driving down prices and encouraging farmers to abandon their rice fields to seek employment elsewhere.

Currently, Fashola explained that fluctuation in the level of Asian rice production is dictating the trends in world rice prices. This, he added, was not good for the Nigerian economy, which depends on imported rice.

For this reason, he explained, that the tariff on imported rice is good for the local farmers ,as it would no longer be profitable for traders to import.

In the absence of tariff, he said local produced rice will be affected by cheaper imports. Thus, the tariff provides farmers some shelter from price movements on world markets.

Canvassing increased local production to discourage dependent on foreign rice, Fashola said achieving this will depend on improvement of irrigation in rice production, pest and disease resistance varieties.

It would strengthen commercial production of the commodity. Within the country, he said the prospect of bringing additional land into rice cultivation are unlimited. As scientists have succeeded in developing appropriate high-yielding varieties for the drought- and flood-prone environments, Fashola said rice production could increase substantially.

Oil expert Prof Ayo Ogunlela has warned that if flooding persists, it could cause soil nutrient deficiency which would affect food production.

In an interview with The Nation, Ogunlela, of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Department, University of Ilorin(UNILORIN), said flood and high rainfall presented a number of potential problems for tree and vegetable crops.

According to him, waterlogged soils are deficient in nutrients, which are essential for healthy root growth. Soil erosion and eventual loss of nutrients, he explained, lead to insufficient growth and could eventually cause cell, root and plant death.

He said widespread flooding makes farming challenging for many farmers. As a result , many fields will show potassium deficiency, which is necessary for plant growth. Meanwhile, a report said over 1,600 farm lands were affected by flood in Gombe state.

The Secretary,All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Gombe State Chapter, Alhaji Gambo Sarkin-Noma, said that members of the association accompanied the committee set up by the Federal Government to inspect some of the affected areas that were seriously flooded.The secretary said that plans were under way to drill boreholes in those areas for irrigation purposes. According to him, almost every part of the state was affected but he identified the areas worst hit to include Dadin-Kowa in Yamaltu/Deba Local Government area, which is close to the upper Benue river basin. He said that no fewer than 400 rice and maize farmlands were destroyed in the state.Other places were Shinga in Yamaltu Deba local government, Durara and Maleri villages in Kwami local government area where 600 farmlands were destroyed and Kupto village in Funakaye local government areas of the state.

The world fish feed sector is witnessing a shake-up.

Norwegian Koppernæs and Danish TripleNine are to form the largest Nordic fishmeal and fish oil business.

The new company according to a statement,will have factories in Norway, Denmark and Chile and will own 50 per cent of shares in the Norwegian trading company, Norsildmel AS.

The basis for the merger is that the two parties have a convergence of views on the strategic challenges and opportunities for development.

TripleNine Group will thus have a better opportunity to develop new products and meet customer needs.The merger will not come fully into effect until all approvals are received and is expected to be completed in spring 2013.

According to Chief Executive Officer of Jejenuwa Company Limited, TripleNine accredited Nigerian representative, Mr Hakeem Oyeneyin, the alliance will provide the TripleNine Group a strong capability for growth and innovation, and will further strengthen TripleNine’s position as a world leader in fishmeal production and other allied products. “The basis for the merger is that the two parties have a convergence of views on the strategic challenges and opportunities for development.

The strength of the two companies will enable the new one to pursue substantial growth opportunities. The merger will provide an opportunity to create an industry leader with strategic intent of transforming the fishmeal and allied products industry.

‘’The TripleNine Group will have a better opportunity to develop new products and as such, meet customer needs,” Oyeneyin explained.

He said the merger would not come into effect until all approvals were received. It is expected to be completed before the second quarter of 2013.

To increase the income of farm families, Nigeria Cassava Growers Association (NCGA) is planning processing plants for the 36 states.

Speaking at the group’s meeting in Lagos, its President, Pastor Segun Adewumi, said the association planned to raise 60 investors in each state to invest in the project.

Other core investors, he said, would be brought in to boost the capital outlay for the projects.

By embarking on the processing plants, Adewumi said the group wants to increase the productivity of small scale farmers.

The target, he said, was to turn the cassava sector into a major player by adopting improved production and organising producers and processors into efficient value-added chains.

To achieve this, he said the group would build farm clusters around the processing plants.

Adewumi said cassava farmers produce for an inelastic food market. This, he said, leads to wide swings of prices every other harvest, in the absence of a minimum price guarantee schemes.

Because of this, he said many farmers have lost a fortune.

He said the association is ready to work with the government to create reliable demand and help strengthen cassava value-added chains. This will include provision of incentives for cassava producers,fertiliser availability and credit to farmers.

He said cassava transformation requires committed farmers, oriented towards commercial production to achieve the government objective, adding that the group is cultivation 750,000 hectares to boost national production.

Cassava-based industrial products,according to him, are just a fraction of the derivatives, and that the growth potential of the industry is huge.

Specifically, Adewumi said size of garri market is large,apart from export demand.

He said the association will support the establishment of multiplication centers to facilitate farmers access to improved cassava varieties.

According to him, the Presidential cassava initiative has raised the profile of cassava and demonstrated its immense potential.

He said the group has a mission to move cassava from a subsistence crop to a cash spinner and is working with farmers to supply raw materials for high quality cassava flour.

To achieve this, he said the group is ready to patronise fabricators to build and sell thousands of grating, dewatering, and drying machines.

Over 500,000 peasant farmers have been registered to benefit from the Cassava Development Fund within the two months of its commencement of operation.

A total of six million peasant farmers are being targeted to register and benefit from the programme before the end of this year. The new Fund is to be built through levies generated on wheat imports into the country as a key incentive to the Cassava Development Initiative of the current administration. The new policy stipulates that 65 per cent of the total income generated from the newly imposed 15 per cent levy on wheat import into the country will, henceforth, go into the Fund. The Fund, according to the Cassava Development Policy recently unfolded by President Goodluck administration, will be dedicated to the cassava sub-sector’s development in the country.

The operation of the new 15 per cent levy on wheat imports commenced on June 1. About N600billion was being targeted as the pool fund, from which beneficiaries would benefit.

In a related development,

the Southwest Chairman of the Cassava Growers Association, Dr David Ogunsade, has said the crop will soon complement petroleum as a major foreign exchange earner.

He stated this during an interview in Osogbo.

He said the Jonathan administration places premium on cassava cultivation, processing and export to increase the revenue of the nation.

According to him, Nigeria is leading other countries in the production of cassava because its physical environment is very conducive for cassava cultivation.

“In the past, farmers grew cassava mainly for consumption and other domestic use, ignoring the investment opportunities, which the industry offers.

“With the government’s intervention through the provision of high-yielding cassava varieties, credit facilities and other farm inputs, farmers are now aware of the enormous potential of cassava,’’ he said.

Ogunsade observed that the favourable environment for cassava cultivation coupled with the availability of foreign market had encouraged more farmers to invest in the crop.

He said the development would allow Nigeria to maintain its leading position in the world.

Ogunsade commended President Goodluck Jonathan for promoting cassava as an alternative means of enriching the nation and improving the living standard of many cassava farmers. He appealed to all stakeholders to play their expected roles so as to achieve the purpose of government’s intervention in the sector.