Category: Agriculture

Farmers in the North – Central and Taraba have narrated different experiences from the effects of irregular rainfall patterns on harvest during the 2021 farming season, as the cropping season rolls to an end.

In a survey conducted by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in the zone, some of the farmers said the rains impacted their crops positively as they were already recording bumper harvests.

Others, however, submitted that the rains had ceased too early, which made them experience poor yields.

Experts are of the view that the irregular rainfall patterns which subsequently affect harvest in these parts of the country can also be attributed to the global problem of climate change.

In Benue, it was a joyous note as farmers said that the rainfall recorded in the state in the 2021 planting season affected their crops positively and had led to a bumper harvest for most.

One of them is Mrs Mbaoron Tyoakaa, a yam farmer, who said that the rainfall impacted positively on her crops.

“I am yet to commence full harvesting of my crops but I am sure that I will have better yields at the end of the day.

“I have harvested only a small portion and the harvest is good,” Tyoakaa said excitedly.

Another grower, Mr Terdue Ijir, a soybean farmer, said that he had a very good harvest from the 2021 cropping season.

“I have harvested all the soybean that I planted; though I am yet to thrash it I know that I will get more bags when compared to the 2020 harvest.

“I am grateful to God for the harvest because he provided us with enough rainfall,” Ijir said.

A farmer who grows both soybean and rice, Mr Titus Atondu, said that the bumper harvest experienced by farmers in the state had also affected the price of their yields.

Atondu said that before the bumper harvest, a 28 – kilogramme bag of soybean was sold for N35,000 but now it is N28,000.

“Also, a 28kg bag of rice was sold for 32,000 and some N30,000 but now it is sold for N25,000 and N24,000 respectively for the same size of the bag,” he said.

The Director, Agricultural Services in the state, Mr Thomas Unongo also commented.

Unongo said that farmers in the state were given seeds that could withstand drought and all types of infections, and that helped them to have a bumper harvests.

“They were also given water-resistant crops and they planted, so, no matter the amount of rainfall, they will still have a bountiful harvest.

“Most farmers in the state will have bumper harvest because most of them applied the ”Good Agronomic Practices,” he said.

Similarly, farmers in Taraba have expressed delight over the bumper harvest recorded in the 2021 cropping season due to the steady rainfall enjoyed in the state throughout the season.

Those of them who spoke with NAN in Jalingo noted that the rains had a very positive impact on their crops during the season.

Among them was Mr Simon Ijir, a rice farmer, who said that the rainfall which lasted up till November had resulted in bumper harvest for him and other farmers in the state.

“This cropping season is exceptional because there has been steady rainfall that led to a bumper harvest for many crops,” Ijir said.

He, however, lamented that the bumper harvest did not cause a drop in prices of foodstuff in the state due to the current inflationary trend in the country.

Equally, Alhaji Aliyu Suleiman, a maize farmer, said that the adequate rainfall had put smiles on the faces of farmers as it resulted in greater yields of many crops.

According to Suleiman, even the beans that he normally mixes with maize has done exceedingly well due to the steady rainfall witnessed during the cropping season.

Mrs Mary Aso, a beniseed farmer, said the steady rainfall had helped greatly in enhancing bumper harvest in 2021.

Dr David Kassa, the Taraba Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, said that farmers of various crops had reported bumper harvest in the state.

According to Kassa, the rainfall starts on time and continues till November, saying the situation has made a high yield of crops possible in the state.

He urged farmers to reserve a portion of the crops for their consumption against the rising inflation in the country.

In Kogi, a farmer, Mr Wale Oloruntoba, said farmers in the state had also recorded bumper harvests.

According to Oloruntoba, everything they planted such as Beniseed, beans, yam, soybeans and groundnuts, yielded very well, adding that guinea corn to has been growing well.

”We thank God for the level of rainfall this year because as farmers, we have experienced bumper harvest of crops such as yam, soya beans, maize and beniseed,” he said.

Mrs Esther Audu, the National President, Women in Agriculture Cooperative Federation Ltd. told NAN that rainfall had impacted positively on farm produce and food items in the 2021 cropping season.

Audu said that under normal circumstances, the impact of the rains on the cost of food would have been great and favourable.

However, she said that the reverse was the case because farmers could not cultivate many crops because of the fear of attacks by herdsmen and kidnappers.

”So, there is not much difference in the cost of food,” Audu said.

She said that rice, yam, maize, groundnuts were the crops the farmers were able to cultivate at nearby farmlands.

In a related development, in Plateau, an agriculture expert, Mr Emmanuel Kwapdimma, said the state experienced an unusual rainfall pattern during the 2021 cropping season, which he described as “a mixed fortune” for farmers in the area.

Kwapdimma who works with the Plateau Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources said that the rain started late, ceased midseason and stopped early.

He said that the unusual pattern negatively affected crops such as rice and maize, but favoured potatoes, soybeans, and cowpeas.

“For potatoes, the water was enough, but it was not for maize because maize is usually planted late, same for rice,” Kwapdimma said.

He said that the unusual situation had adversely affected harvest which in turn had a negative impact on food security.

According to Kwapdimma, if there is a low yield per hectare, it will have ripple effects on food security generally.

“If you were getting 30 bags and then it is reduced to 20 bags, there is a likelihood that it will affect food security.

“This is one of the impacts of climate change on food security,” he said.

Mr John Wuyep, Chairman All Farmers Association (AFAN), Plateau chapter, also told a tale of woe.

Wuyep said there was a shortfall in the rainfall pattern in the state, and it affected crops especially rain-fed rice, maize and others.

“The rain stopped at some point and before it returned, most of the crops had withered.

“For most of this year, farms did not retain any water and such is not good for rice and other crops that need water to thrive.

“However, crops such as cowpea, potatoes and others that don’t need much water did well,” he said.

Mr Amos Shinat, Chairman Plateau Potato Value Chain, told NAN that the rainfall pattern did not affect potatoes much.

Shinat said that except in places where the soil was gravel in nature and generated heat during the period that the rain ceased, there was nothing to complain about.

“We have gone round the village markets, and you will observe that the farmers have a bumper harvest.

“If the rainfall pattern had affected it, we wouldn’t have seen much yield like that.

“If at all the rain-affected us, may be out of 100 farmers, 10 or 15 were affected depending on the nature of the land.

“Those that have good yields were far more than those that did not have,” she explained.

The situation is, however, different in Niger, as the state chapter of AFAN said the sudden seizure of rain during the season would bring about poor yields and subsequent increase in prices of foodstuff.

The Vice-Chairman of the association, Alhaji Abdulrahman Yusuf, who stated this, was emphatic that there would be no bumper harvest in the state in 2021 unless the government took proactive measures to assist farmers with dry season irrigation equipment.

READ ALSO: ‘Africa suffers from climate change’

“There was a drought in between, so it will affect crop production negatively.

“There has been a break in the rain pattern for over three weeks now,” Yusuf said.

He said that the cessation of rainfall would result in a low yield for rice because many of the swampy areas where farmers cultivated rice did not get enough water to make it swampy.

“The inadequate rain has resulted in stunted growth for our rice. Therefore, we are going to have poor yields,” Yusuf said.

The chairman said that other crops that would be affected negatively owing to inadequate rainfall were soybeans and sorghum which required adequate rainfall to mature.

He explained that cowpea such as beans would do well as it did not require heavy rain to mature.

Meanwhile, some farmers in Nasarawa State have lamented the low crop yields being recorded in the state, which they blamed on the commencement of early rains that were not sustained.

One of them is Mr Abel Abogonye of Shabu community who complained that the early rains impacted negatively on his yam farm.

“When the rain started late February, so many of us started planting yams. Unfortunately, the rain ceased around March, but returned and lasted till the end of May, when most yams became stunted.

“The yield is not as we had in 2020. At about this time last year, we were selling 10 tubers of yam for less than N3,000 because of the bumper harvest. Now, 10 tubers of yam, depending on the size, range between N5,000 and N7,000,” Abogonye said.

Blessing Wuni, beans and watermelon farmer, said the irregular rainfall affected her yields this harvest season.

“A 100-kilogramme bag of melon now sells for N108,000 as against N53,000 it was sold same time in 2020.

“Beans now sells for N1,200 per measure (Mudu) as against N350 same time last year,” Wuni said.

She, however, said that farmers in the area were expecting a bumper harvest of crops such as guinea corn and millet. (NAN)

A Nigerian agritech startup, Agrikoin, has declared its commitment to end financial challenges confronting small scales farmers throughout agricultural value chain.

The agriculture-backed cryptocurrency created to catalyse financial inclusion within the agricultural value chain, is creating a decentralised supply chain that could allow farmers to sell their produce seamlessly to end consumers.

The CEO, Isa Ismail Waziri told TechDigest at GITEX 2021 that the goal is to alleviate the financial problems of small-scale farmers through the introduction of a unique digital currency for the entire agricultural ecosystem. Yet, not many are aware of the potentials of agritech on the economy.

Agritech means the use of technological innovations in agriculture to increase its yield, efficiency and profitability; using technology to achieve faster planting, modified crops that grow well in different environments and harvesting; using robots, big data, artificial intelligence and other technologies necessary to solve the challenges in agriculture.

Nigeria has seen a rapid growth of agritech startups offering digital solutions aimed at addressing the challenges faced by small-scale farmers and improving their livelihoods.

Farmsponsor, Requid, Farmcrowdy, Thrive Agric, AgroMall, Hello Tractor, and Crop2Cash have been able to harness funding opportunities to achieve social and economic impact across the agriculture ecosystem.

While some start-ups have transitioned into established companies, there are several barriers that many others have to scale through – hostile business environment, an ecosystem unable to support long-term growth, low levels of agricultural knowledge and skills, and limited access to funding opportunities.

Active funders in the Nigerian agritech space include incubators, accelerators, angel investors and donors, all of which tend to invest during early funding stages. Startups have to contend with three major funding gaps – limited availability of local capital, lack of institutional investors investing in agritech and inability to attract big-ticket investments.

Waziri noted that small-scale farmers are hampered by various difficulties, especially lack of finance and market access. Therefore, agritech companies need to have a realistic approach to revenue generation.

Digital agricultural solutions that require farmers to pay user fees from the onset are less likely to scale rapidly, limiting their investment potential. This is because investors are more likely to work with agritech companies with a clear revenue model and a value proposition that addresses multiple pain points along a value chain.

Agritech companies should patiently engage with investors to further explain the benefits of their digital solution and related business opportunities, while investors may need to think of alternative models for agritech investments. Also, startups need to educate investors about their unique business proposition and the opportunity for both sides.

Since engagements take time, government support should be available at the state or local levels as such intervention helps to increase investment in agritech. For instance, providing tax exemptions for early-stage investments could incentivize additional local investment in the sector and tech as a whole.

Beyond specific support through agriculture or agritech-related policies, the Nigerian government should encourage the growth of companies that are keen to provide farmers and crop buyers with digital payments solution. The current regulatory framework hinders the growth of mobile money which offers financial services to rural communities.

In addition to revamping the country’s financial and digital infrastructure, improving the physical infrastructure will benefit the agricultural and agritech sectors. Many companies have to invest in logistics (i.e. warehousing, transportation) to provide services to farmers and markets.

Infrastructural upgrades will mean a reduction in the cost of moving goods around, improving start-ups’ margins and revenue. This transformation, which will be critical to improving the ease of doing business in Nigeria, has significant potential to attract investment to the agritech sector.

There are numerous growth potentials for farmer organizations to increase productivity only when they can access finance. As such, access to finance is not only a necessity, it enable farmers to increase yield and ensure food security.

No organization can be viable when these issues are not addressed. Measures should include profiling of farmers’ bodies and and assessing their risk management. This will help to identify and create creditworthy farmer organizations with low management risks.

Waziri, in his remarks, appealed to the federal government and relevant agencies to provide the necessary support to enable Agrikoin to deploy their agricultural financial services for the benefit of Nigerians and the growth of the economy.

The National Information Technology and Development Agency (NITDA) is playing a crucial role and supporting startups with the establishment of incubator centres like the National Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, and the National Digital Innovation and Entrepreneurship Centre.

I urge NITDA and other agencies to further assist agrictech companies to deploy innovative financial services for the benefit of Nigerians and the growth of the digital economy.

Abbas Badmus writes from FHA Lugbe, Abuja.

With more demands for good stocks to produce day old chicks, the Nigerian Institute of Animal Science (NIAS) has gathered stakeholders to discuss new standards in the hatchery and breeding sector, DANIEL ESSIET reports.

Poultry is one of the largest subsectors in agriculture. It has created jobs, empowered small farmers and  boosted food security.

Faced with the growing demand for eggs and poultry meat, the Nigerian Institute of Animal Science (NIAS) gathered stakeholders in Ibadan to discuss the new standards for operators of hatcheries and producers of day old chicks. The objective was to intimate them on the expectations of the government towards establishing an environment that would support world-class poultry breeding and boost production.

The forum allowed the participants to obtain information on the various aspects of poultry production such as biology and physiology of birds, breeding and rearing systems, nutrition, health, hygiene and food security, environmental impact and product quality.

At the forum, stakeholders expressed the need to certify more producers of pure lines and grandparent stocks of poultry that will be subject to regulation by the government.

One of them was Managing Director, Rostal Resources Limited, Taiwo Adeoye. He described poultry producers as the backbone of the agriculture sector. Despite the challenges, he said farmers had continued to produce high-quality products and keep the industry competitive and resilient.

To help poultry and egg producers become more competitive, Adeoye, who chaired the occasion, said the industry needed regulations to ensure breeders and hatcheries produce the highest quality day old chicks.

He indicated that the industry was facing challenges which were not helping to enhance performance and profitability. While feed and other issues were critical, according to him, the quality of day old chicks was important to achieving maximum broiler performance.

According to him, improvement in poultry production was one of the most promising options for Nigerians to gain affordable protein.

For the industry, however, he noted that it has not been good news with so many farms closing following rising costs of feed. He said farmers were battling with high cost of procuring day-old chicks and feeds.

Notwithstanding, he noted that the potential in the industry was immense as the sector provides employment to more than 70,000 people.

The Head of Inspection, Nigerian Institute of Animal Science (NIAS), Olufemi  Atunbi, said the institute was committed to working with partners to help farmers manage risk.

According to him, the institute envisions a stronger sector that supports jobs creation.

For him, a successful poultry business revolves around good chicks raise for meat and bred for table eggs.

He noted that providing small-scale producers with better quality chicks would make poultry production more sustainable.

He added that increasing small-scale poultry producers’ access to healthy day-old-chicks, will enable them to reduce their production costs, expand their businesses and substantially increase their profit margins.

For the industry to grow, Atunbi suggested that farmers must use good quality parent stocks for the production of day old clicks.

While Nigeria is making efforts to achieve self-sufficient in poultry production, Atunbi noted that there was the need to improve the quality of parent stock   to meet international standards.

Atunbi said production of parent stock is a highly specialised and resource-intensive business. According to him, hatchery owners import the parent flocks as day old chicks from the primary breeders abroad. The birds, he explained, were kept in breeding farms which are then used in hatcheries for producing commercial broiler or layer chicks.

While the imported breeding stock has given the chicken meat industry access to better poultry strains, Atunbi said it was time for the stakeholders to welcome technology to advance and improve breeding practices, adding that the institute support technology transfer ecosystem to support innovation adoption in the poultry industry.

To this effect, he maintained that the institute was determined to promote an industry where poultry farmers could benefit from good parent stock produced from world-class breeding facilities.

With the regulations taking place, Atunbi told The Nation, that breeding farms were expected to follow guidelines on hatchery management.

To achieve certification, he said the farms must show competencies and produce records on managing bird health, maintaining the correct composition and quantity of feed.

He said the institute wants to ensure that only certified farms are involved in the production of poultry breeds.

He pledged the readiness of the institute to collaborate with enterprises to promote the application of breeding technologies.

He explained that if the industry must succeed, there must be certification of poultry breeders to ensure they supply only high value stock for poultry meat.

According to him, it is not going to be business as usual for producers supplying day-old chicks. He added that the institute wants to ensure producers guarantee birds transported are prepared to arrive their destinations at the peak of physical condition.

The Deputy Director/ Head of Regulatory Affairs, NIAS, Njoaguani Harry Ifeanyi, said for poultry breeding farms  the safe  transportation of  grandparent stock was critical if the operators must prevent losses can be significant.

According to him, the well-being and quality of chicks could compromise by a very weak link in the transportation logistics chain.

In moving chicks, he stressed that not only must the temperature be coordinated there must be the necessary ventilation to guarantee airflow   in any condition.

Ifeanyi explained that hatcheries occupy a central position between breeder farms and poultry production houses.

He reiterated that the institute is taking measures to ensure breeder farms and hatcheries implement measures to prevent risk of illness through contamination of chickens with E. coli.

According to Ifeanyi, one of the key elements of successful farm management is maintaining good farm biosecurity.

Enforcing biosecurity procedures, he noted, helps to keep birds healthy by reducing the chance of getting diseases.

He stressed that good hatchery hygiene was important to ensure that the chicks do not pick up infection and are healthy and vigorous on release.

To meet this high demand for poultry meat, Head Southwest Zone ,NIAS, Prince Ogundipe Adetokunbo, said hatcheries needed to better parent stocks to  maximise chick production, and this entails not only the incubation of more fertile eggs.

According to him, hatcheries and breeder farms need to achieve high production efficiency in a sustainable manner.

To make poultry profitability, he said producers must be able to achieve high survival rates under any conditions.

The General Manager Sales& Operations, Amo Farm Sieberer Hatchery Limited, Owati Adebola, believes in  the good intentions of government and the private sector.

According to him, the potential for transformation, is huge and exciting. Adebola said regulations were welcomed to ensure quality standards are complied with across the industry.

He said the regulations would help to encourage the establishment of certified hatcheries   to meet the increasing production demands of day-old chicks across the country.

The Chairman, Day Old Chicks Merchants Association of Nigeria (DOCMAN), Olaiya Ogunmoyela, reiterated that his members were ready to comply with rules that will keep the industry safe and stabilised.

He stressed however that the industry was going a number of challenges and needed the support of the various tiers of government.

In related development Chi Farms Limited, a member of the TGI Group and a leading agribusiness company in Nigeria, has concluded the expansion plan of its 36 million day-old chicks yearly hatchery production capacity at Ajanla Farms, Ibadan to 44 million day-old-chicks.

“Expanding our operations will enable us to have better control, supervision, and most importantly sustain our quality standards while we meet the continuously growing demands from customers,” said Ananda Raj, business head –poultry marketing and sales, Chi Farms.

Raj said the expansion was necessary to meet the increasing production demands of day-old chicks across the country.

Also, the Managing Director, Chi Farms, Tunji Olaitan, said there were plans for further expansions, noting that it is to respond adequately not only in terms of day-old-chick volume but also delivering premium quality offerings to the Nigerian poultry industry.

“By next year, we will have an additional complement of eight setters, thus increasing the operational capacity from 44 million day-old chicks per year to 52 million chicks,” Olaitan said.

According to him, these strategic investments are to ensure that Chi Farms remains the market leader with premium quality products and pacesetting in new technologies integration in the industry.

Some of the innovations in the pipeline for Chi Farms include infrared break treatment machine (PSP), which offers stress-free and precision de-beaking options with real-time value addition.

The farm is also accelerating housing modification projects and the conversion of naturally ventilated poultry houses to environmentally controlled houses.

In another development, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)  has  forecast that  global chicken meat production by increase by two  per cent  next year  to a record 100.9 million tonnes.

According to it, major producers such as  Brazil, China, and the United States  will record  significant growth . Despite relatively high feed prices squeezing profitability globally, USDA sees expansion spurred by robust demand as consumers seek low-cost animal protein.

Growth in Brazil,it noted  will be driven by both global demand and domestic consumption as household budgets are strained, while that  China production will rebound as large white feather broiler operations utilize production capacity from new facilities.

Also, it sees   improved economic outlook, easing COVID-related production problems, and strong domestic and foreign demand driving Thailand output higher.

According to it, global exports will rise by three per cent next year to a record 13.3 million tonnes.

Brazil, which is still the  world’s leading exporter will account for over one-third of the growth as it is well-positioned to gain from growing EU and United Kingdom (UK) demand.

 

Research is playing a major role in transforming Nigeria from a net food importer to exporter. To make the country self-reliant, stakeholders are looking up to universities for functional research in the areas of genomics, digital agriculture, climate-smart technologies and methods, efficient water use, development of high-yielding, bio-friendly varieties and quality and safety standards, DANIEL ESSIET reports.

For the Chief Executive, Niji Foods, Kolawole Adeniji, there is the need to rethink and adapt agricultural research to achieve a robust food industry that will address nutritional needs, boost food security and grow the economy.

Adeniji has been involved in the use of cassava to alleviate hunger in Nigeria. He is one of the most successful agro entrepreneurs in the Southwest with at least 10,000 acres of cassava. His cassava-based products such as garri and flour have helped him to generate income, since they are accepted in Oyo, and Lagos  states and outside the country. He also runs an agricultural school.

So far, he is happy as a contributor to the regional economy and also for creating jobs.

He is enthusiastic about implementing innovative measures in the cultivation of biofortified cassava va-rieties.

His hunger for knowledge has kept him in touch with international producers to test crop diversification practices to help him produce more and grow his profit.

Like any farmer, he sees a lot of potential in agriculture. This optimism is borne out of years of experience and application of better production planning measures. He processes cassava into food products, thereby creating million tonnes of peel yearly. Combining sustainability and innovation comes naturally to him.

To solve the environmental problems that mountain of peel waste would cause, he set out to convert them into livestock feeds.

Today, he is on the threshold of converting wet cassava peel into energy-rich, high-quality animal feed.

What he has achieved from cassava waste can be used as feed for cattle, sheep, goat, poultry, pig and fish.

Beyond this, he sees an industry based on cassava peel waste taking shape. Notwithstanding, he  believes he would have achieved more if the universities were  collaborating more with self-researchers like him on market-driven researches, to change the fortunes of struggling farmers.

For him, returns on investment from such researches would help to make agro business more profitable. With surging population growth, Adeniji posited that there was a need to increase agriculture productivity and the universities have a role to play.

Having seen the products from some of the universities, he urged the authorities to review their agriculture curriculum to make it more entrepreneurial and functional to meet the aspirations of youths across the country. He is not alone sharing this thought. Same is Plateau based agro entrepreneur, Rotimi Williams, who is also the President, Young Rice Farmers of Nigeria. He was running one of the largest rice farms in Nassarawa until insecurity drove him to Plateau.

Once, he had about 5000 acres earmarked for rice cultivation. Amid challenges such as insecurity, weather vagaries, and inadequate water supply, Williams has continued to work wonders in rice cultivation with modern techniques.

His success story as an innovative cultivator exemplifies and inspires other rice producers. He is proving to be an example on how to manage farmers and land owners and grow better rice and earn profits.

As a visionary farmer, he has continued to research on ways to maximise use of water and nutrients. Through personal researches, he achieved progress in developing cost-effective management of rice varieties.

He has experimented with best agronomic practices in rice-based cropping systems. He stressed the need for strong collaboration between successful agro entrepreneurs,  agricultural universities and research institutes.

This, according to him, was crucial in increasing the prosperity of small and marginal farmers through the proliferation of rice science. To enable farmers increase their income, Williams noted that universities should partner successful farmers.  However, he noted that achieving this goal will require innovation and development, as well as grassroots problem solving for farmers. With general and special universities across the country, he said established farmers should be invited to help in training and mentoring undergraduates in agriculture. According to Williams, the support of experienced local agro entrepreneurs is essential in helping young farmers adopt new methods and approaches to farming. Collaborative research between such farmers and universities, he maintained, would provide students with a platform to benefit from mutual expertise. He noted that students on internship would be provided an opportunity to adopt successful agricultural strategies. The collaboration will equip students to bring about new innovations in the field of agriculture and crop protection.

Despite a vast network of research institutions and agriculture universities across the country, analysts believe so much have to be done to make farming prosperous.

An analyst observed that the research system driven by the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria (ARCN) has to be revamped if the country is to achieve food security. Right now, there are incidents of weak basic research outcomes, poor monitoring and unpunished scientific fraud which have destroyed ambitious research projects and shaken the morale of the public research system, he said.

Paucity of funds

While the industry blames the universities and the research institutes for not doing much, the impression is that in most cases funds allocated them is a huge disappointment considering emerging challenges in the industry.

The Dean, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Ilorin (UNILORIN), Prof Abiodun Adeloye, noted that while researchers in the universities have  capacities to produce  research  results that would drive innovations in the agriculture and food processing  sector,  increase the incomes of small farming enterprises, boost employment and improve the regional supply, they have not been funded adequately to acquire equipment,  translate such works  into products  that  several companies  can adapt to  grow  sales.

Abroad, he said the private sector support researchers to keep farmers in touch with the latest technological innovations and knowledge in the agriculture industry.

He added that the reverse was the case here where companies would not engage universities and research institutes to solve farming challenges.

Rather than import technologies, Adeloye explained that engaging local universities was an advantage because there are interdisciplinary, multi-university team of researchers to produce technologies designed to work on Nigerian farms.

Read Also: Boosting education through STEM

He stressed that the goal of local universities was to help growers improve efficiency, productivity and profitability.

The Executive Director of the Agricultural and Rural Management Training Institute (ARMTI), Dr. Olufemi Oladunni, also shares his views.

Speaking with The Nation, Oladunni, observed that the private sector players were not doing enough to support universities and research institutes to foster innovation and promote agricultural modernisation.

ARMTI, he noted, has made agriculture a central part of its mission to improve the way food is grown.

This, he added, has been achieved by developing practical and cost-effective solutions farms.

He has seen such solutions resulting in real-life gains in productivity for small-scale farmers.

The Head of Department, Crop Science and Biotechnology, Imo State University, Owerri, Prof. Martin Onuh, noted that universities have accomplished much in the efforts to ensure farming transitted to modern agro-business through the transfer of essential technology, knowledge, and skills.

According to him, scientists have helped to boost crop yields by interacting  with  farmers to transfer innovations from the academia to the fields.

In all these efforts, Onuh lamented that industries were not supporting universities to promote productivity-led agricultural growth .

The Country Manager, OCP Fertilisers Nigeria, Caleb Usoh, believes something must be done to support universities to encourage students to dream big about agriculture.

Usoh noted that partnership with universities was essential to strengthen the economy.

According to him, if the nation is to make impressive agricultural growth and progress, the capacities of universities and research institutions must be improved to pursue innovations and technological advancements in agriculture.

He believes universities and research institutes should be helping entrepreneurs to germinate, incubate and scale up agriculture-focused businesses that combine science and technology with management and marketing skills.

For instance, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P), in Morocco, which OCP Nigeria parent company, OCP Africa established, is working to sustain a hub of education, research, innovation and entrepreneurship. The goal is to become a solid bridge of knowledge between Morocco, Africa and the world.

Usoh said OCP, through its R&D programme, has close co-operation with research institutions such as Institute of Agricultural Research & Training (IART), National Horticulture Research Institute (NIHORT) and National Institute for Oil Palm Research (NIFOR) in developing specialty fertiliser that are specific to the needs of soils and crops.

The deal, according to him, would help farmers become more productive and prosperous.

He reiterated the readiness of the organisation to bring the best in plant and soil science with UM6P to support the development of  agricultural research in Nigeria.

According to him, the development of agriculture is vital to Nigeria’s food security and economic growth. Despite challenges, he was confident that there could be bright future for farmers.

He said the focus on the company’s partnership with universities is developing agricultural production and innovative farming methods.

An analyst told The Nation lack of interest in agriculture was pushing specialised universities to prepare students for careers in management, engineering and other domains.

Like many developing countries, he noted that Nigeria didn’t have a lot of research and development (R&D) and that the ones it had were mainly in the universities.

A partnership model

The Euro-Mediterranean University of Fez in Morocco has been chosen as the regional academic partner to launch what is hoped will be a revolutionary agritech development hub aimed at transforming Moroccan small-scale subsistence farming into fully-digitalised and innovative agri-food businesses.

 

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With increasing demand for good stocks to produce day old chicks, the Nigerian Institute of Animal Science (NIAS) has gathered stakeholders to discuss new standards in the hatchery and breeding sector, DANIEL ESSIET reports.

Poultry is one of the largest subsectors in agriculture. It has created jobs, empowered small farmers and  boosted food security.

Faced with the growing demand for eggs and poultry meat, the Nigerian Institute of Animal Science (NIAS) gathered stakeholders in Ibadan to discuss the new standards for operators of hatcheries and producers of day old chicks. The objective was to intimate them on the expectations of the government towards establishing an environment that would support world-class poultry breeding and boost production.

The forum allowed the participants to obtain information on the various aspects of poultry production such as biology and physiology of birds, breeding and rearing systems, nutrition, health, hygiene and food security, environmental impact and product quality.

At the forum, stakeholders expressed the need to certify more producers of pure lines and grandparent stocks of poultry that will be subject to regulation by the government.

One of them was Managing Director, Rostal Resources Limited, Taiwo Adeoye. He described poultry producers as the backbone of the agriculture sector. Despite the challenges, he said farmers had continued to produce high-quality products and kept the industry competitive and resilient.

To help poultry and egg producers become more competitive, Adeoye, who chaired the occasion, said the industry needed regulations to ensure breeders and hatcheries produced the highest quality day-old chicks.

He said the industry was facing challenges which were not  enhancing performance and profitability. While feed and other issues are critical, according to him, the quality of day-old chicks is important to achieving maximum broiler performance.

He said improvement in poultry production was one of the most promising options for Nigerians to gain affordable protein. For the industry, however, he noted that it had not been good news with so many farms closing following rising costs of feed. He said farmers were battling with high cost of procuring day-old chicks and feeds.

Notwithstanding, he noted that the potential in the industry was immense as the sector provided employment to more than 70,000 people.

The Head of Inspection, Nigerian Institute of Animal Science (NIAS), Olufemi  Atunbi, said the institute was committed to working with partners to help farmers manage risk. According to him, the institute envisions a stronger sector that supports jobs creation. For him, a successful poultry business revolves around good chicks raised for meat and bred for table eggs.

He noted that providing small-scale producers with better quality chicks would make poultry production more sustainable. He added that increasing small-scale poultry producers’ access to healthy day-old-chicks, would enable them to reduce their production costs, expand their businesses and substantially increase their profit margins.

For the industry to grow, Atunbi suggested that farmers should use good quality parent stocks for the production of day old clicks.

While Nigeria is striving to achieve self-sufficiency in poultry production, Atunbi noted that there was the need to improve the quality of parent stock to meet international standards. He said production of parent stock was a highly specialised and resource-intensive business. According to him, hatchery owners import the parent flocks as day-old chicks from the primary breeders abroad. The birds, he explained, are kept in breeding farms where they used in hatcheries for producing commercial broiler or layer chicks.

As the imported breeding stock has given the chicken meat industry access to better poultry strains, Atunbi said it was time for stakeholders to welcome technology to advance and improve breeding practices, adding that the institute supports technology transfer ecosystem for innovation in the poultry industry.

To this effect, he said the institute was determined to promote an industry where poultry farmers could benefit from good parent stock produced from world-class breeding facilities.

With the regulations taking place, Atunbi told The Nation, breeding farms are expected to follow guidelines on hatchery management. To achieve certification, he said the farms must show competencies and produce records on managing bird health, maintaining the correct composition and quantity of feed.

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He said the institute seeks to ensure that only certified farms were involved in the production of poultry breeds, pledging the readiness of the institute to collaborate with enterprises on the application of breeding technologies.

He explained that if the industry must succeed, there must be certification of poultry breeders to ensure they supplied only high-value stock for poultry meat.

It is not going to be business as usual for producers of day-old chicks, as producers must guarantee that birds transported are prepared to arrive their destinations at the peak of physical condition, he said.

The Deputy Director/Head of Regulatory Affairs, NIAS, Njoaguani Harry Ifeanyi, said for poultry breeding farms,  the safe  transportation of  grandparent stock was critical if the operators must prevent losses which can be significant.

According to him, the well-being and quality of chicks can be compromised by a very weak link in the transportation logistics chain.

In moving chicks, he stressed that not only should the temperature be coordinated there should be necessary ventilation to guarantee airflow in any condition.

Ifeanyi explained that hatcheries occupied a central position between breeder farms and poultry production houses. He reiterated that the institute wa s taking measures to ensure breeder farms and hatcheries implemented measures to prevent risk of illness through contamination of chickens with E. coli.

According to Ifeanyi, one of the key elements of successful farm management is maintaining good farm biosecurity. Enforcing biosecurity procedures, he noted, helps to keep birds healthy by reducing the chance of getting diseases.

To meet this high demand for poultry meat, Head, Southwest Zone, NIAS, Prince Ogundipe Adetokunbo, said hatcheries needed to better parent stocks to maximise chick production, and this entails not only the incubation of more fertile eggs.

According to him, hatcheries and breeder farms need to achieve high production efficiency in a sustainable manner. To make poultry profitability, they must be able to achieve high survival rates under any conditions.

The General Manager, Sales& Operations, Amo Farm Sieberer Hatchery Limited, Owati Adebola, believes in the good intentions of government and the private sector.

To him, the potential for transformation is huge and exciting. Adebola said regulations were welcomed to ensure quality standards were complied with across the industry.

He said the regulations would help to encourage the establishment of certified hatcheries to meet the increasing demands of day-old chicks across the country.

The Chairman, Day Old Chicks Merchants Association of Nigeria (DOCMAN), Olaiya Ogunmoyela, reiterated that his members were ready to comply with rules that would keep the industry safe and stabilised.

He stressed, however, that the industry was going through a number of challenges and needed the support of the various tiers of government.

In a related development, Chi Farms Limited, a member of the TGI Group and a leading agribusiness company in Nigeria, has concluded the expansion plan of its 36 million day-old chicks yearly hatchery production capacity at Ajanla Farms, Ibadan to 44 million.

“Expanding our operations will enable us to have better control, supervision, and most importantly sustain our quality standards while we meet the continuously growing demands from customers,” said Ananda Raj, business head, Poultry Marketing and Sales, Chi Farms.

Raj said the expansion was necessary to meet the increasing production demands of day-old chicks across the country.

Also, the Managing Director, Chi Farms, Tunji Olaitan, said there were plans for further expansions, noting that it would  respond adequately not only in day-old chicks volume but also in delivering premium quality offerings to the Nigerian poultry industry.

“By next year, we will have an additional complement of eight setters, thus, increasing the operational capacity from 44 million day-old chicks per year to 52 million chicks,” Olaitan said.

According to him, these strategic investments are to ensure that Chi Farms remains the market leader with premium quality products and pacesetters in new technologies integration in the industry.

Some of the innovations in the pipeline for Chi Farms include infrared break treatment machine (PSP), which offers stress-free and precision de-beaking options with real-time value addition.

The farm is also accelerating housing modification projects and the conversion of naturally ventilated poultry houses to environmentally-controlled houses.

Also, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)  has  forecast that  global chicken meat production would increase by two per cent next year to a record 100.9 million tonnes.

According to it, major producers such as  Brazil, China, and the United States will record significant growth . Despite relatively high feed prices squeezing profitability globally, USDA sees expansion spurred by robust demand as consumers seek low-cost animal protein.

Growth in Brazil, it noted will be driven by both global demand and domestic consumption as household budgets are strained, while China production will rebound as large white feather broiler operations utilise production capacity from new facilities.

Also, it sees improved economic outlook easing COVID-related production problems, and strong domestic and foreign demand driving Thailand’s output higher. According to it, global exports will rise by three per cent next year to a record 13.3 million tonnes.

Brazil, which is still the world’s leading exporter will account for over one-third of the growth as it is well-positioned to gain from growing EU and United Kingdom (UK) demand.

 

The Federal Government has said everything is being done to achieve food increase and security.

The assurance was given in Calabar by the Minister for Agriculture Dr. Mohammed Abubakar at the opening of a four- day training for 40 extension workers on extension tools, methodologies and selected agricultural value chains.

The Minister, who was represented by Mrs. Offiong Ina-Ibor, an Assistant Director in the Federal Ministry, noted that the training was ongoing simultaneously across the 36 States iand the Federal Capital Territory under his Ministry in collaboration with the National Agricultural Extension and Research Liaison Services (NAERLS) and SASAKAWA-Africa Association/Global 2000.

He acknowledged that there was a drift in the agricultural extension system, which informed the resolve of the Federal government to revitalise the practice with aim of achieving increase food production in Nigeria.

He disclosed it was the desire of President, Muhammadu Buhari to achieve increased food production to feed the growing population as well as grow foreign earnings from agricultural export.

Read Also: Masari: Fed Govt spends N45b on social interventions

He noted the current situation posed by COVID-19 has brought new challenges to food supply and youth employment.

He expressed Federal Government’s commitment to help farmers and value chain actors to make effective use of productive forces and advances in information technology to improve the livelihoods of rural population, create jobs and promote sustainable agricultural and socio-economic development of the country.

Cross River Commissioner for Agriculture, Ntufam Okon Owuna, who declared the training opened, thanked the Federal Government for the support and the various agricultural programmes which he noted was complimentary to what Cross River Government was doing.

Represented by a Director in the Ministry, Mr. Christopher Achong, he noted that the value chains in focus; Coco and Rice as well as extension services are all areas which the State government had equally given attention to and the federal government programme is a huge booster and impetus to the efforts on ground.

Some of the extension workers at the training expressed excitement to participate in the programme, which will see them contribute in practical terms to what comes out of farm produce.

Cletus Ogibidi, an extension worker, noted that farmers often cooperate with them because they know that the information shared are always beneficial.

The global honey industry is estimated at $10 billion, an industry that the Federal Government can harness by empowering traditional bee keepers. It has identified honey not only for its economic potential but also for the benefits it offers to the environment and rural communities. There are moves to encourage new entrants and to support existing farmers to explore both domestic and international opportunities, DANIEL ESSIET reports.

Globally, honeybees contribute to food production. They also make an important contribution, through pollination, to crop production and the wider environment.

It is for these reasons that the Managing Director, Thy Global Investment Limited, Ismail AbdulAzeez, has been behind the movement to change people’s perspectives about bee-keeping.

He has been involved in the campaign to boost bee-keeping and has shown people the importance of honeybees.

Bee-keeping and production, if done right, according to AbdulAzeez, could create more income for honey producers and promote international trade.

He has been in consultation with stakeholders and includes promoting training and support as a key action to improve bee-keeping skills and provide a supportive and inclusive community.

With his support and others’ domestic honey production has risen. Currently, he manages 150 beehives whose colonies produce at least 10 tonnes of honey yearly.

He started beekeeping using movable-frame hives, which are placed in various positions in forests or deep vegetation.  Wanting to learn more, he participated in various programmes.

Today, he has become a successful beekeeper. He serves as an inspiration to others.

One of the notable bee farms that conducts training on bee-keeping is in Sango Ota, Ogun State. It is owned and operated by AbdulAzeez.

His efforts have started making impact in Ogun as successful bee entrepreneurs are coming from various parts of the state.

He has continued to oversee the training of new honey farmers, introducing beehives nationwide. His words: “We have trained close to 200 participants. Our participants are successful because we offered them both theory and practical training. Most of them focus on honey and beeswax sales.”

AbdulAzeez brought honey farmers together, organised distribution of resources, infrastructure, and training to reignite the honey industry.

His honey bee products have reached wider markets and production rate has risen significantly as curious stakeholders visit his farm to learn his technology and best practices.

Today, his business continues to expand and reach new markets. He became a successful entrepreneur by improving the quality of every jar of honey.

The road to success wasn’t at all that smooth for him.The business took an unexpected turn with herdsmen and others decimating hives. He said: “We suffered attack from herders two times in 2016 and 2019.”

He has suffered slow supply of queens and vanishing honey bees. However, he would not allow the situation to deter him from bee-keeping.

Despite the problems besetting the industry, he has persevered and maintained regular training of farmers on proper raising of bees.

For him, aside from being a lucrative source of income to farmers, bee-keeping could provide jobs for people who want to have a stable income.

He believes promoting bee-keeping in rural areas will help to boost economic development.

As his name became known in the sector, he has taken it upon himself to expose more Nigerians to the world of food exports.

Increasingly, there have been efforts by beekeepers, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and researchers to promote bee-keeping. One of is the move by Adesina Daniel Oduntan, an expert beekeeper, who runs United States-based Salt Lake business – Bee-Craft Consult, to drive the bee-keeping industry and to promote pollinators.

Knowing the benefits of bees, he is ready to help farmers with pollination, thereby increasing their chances of having a bountiful harvest.

His campaign is not only to help farmers increase their production through pollination to get more Nigerians employed through the bee-keeping industry.

In his research, Oduntan is trying out products, training more farmers, improving quality analysis, providing additional bee-keeping services, and investing in new equipment. He hopes to pass his knowledge on to more farmers.

Oduntan is planning an international conference in Ogun State next month, to help foster a stronger bee-keeping economy. The goal is to help people become self-reliant and competitive through developing their bee-keeping skills. In the U.S., he runs a bee training institute that certifies bee-keepers.

He is working on a roadmap to drive apiculture nationwide to attract potential investors.

He is determined to draw global attention to honey produced in Nigeria by ensuring that it is produced real and pure while also boosting the industry.

Oduntan acknowledged bee-keeping as an aspect of agribusiness and works with international experts to provide the needed technical, marketing, and appropriate assistance to apiarists.

The conference will feature plenary talks and sessions with international bee scholars as resource persons.

Speakers will discuss issues such as honey production, queen replacement, range, and resource diversity in bee research, development, and management. Topics such as bee management, queen rearing, and bee diseases, pest and predators, bee flora and pollination management will be addressed.

The conference will provide specialised training in beehive and other equipment making and also mass queen rearing will be provided to key enterprising farmers.

The speakers will come from the U.S. and Nigeria. Activities at the conference will include an exhibit on bee products; technical tours; and roundtable discussions.

Oduntan brought his business to Utah from Nigeria and has found great success among the friendly locals.

In the U.S., he has worked and supported institutes to train professional beekeepers

He has partnered national agricultural research and extension services improving honey bee species.

According to analysts,  more than one-third of all crop production – 90 crops ranging from nuts to berries to flowering vegetables in the U.S. feel the impact of insect pollination.

Managed honey bee colonies also add at least $15 billion yearly by increasing yields and helping to ensure superior-quality harvests.

He encouraged Nigerians to consider setting up hives where possible, or at least to plant bee-friendly flowers and flowering herbs in their gardens and yards.

The National President, Federation of Beekeepers Association of Nigeria, Bidemi Ojeleye, has taken it upon himself  to promote an economy that will increase honey production and pollination.

For him, bees are crucial to agriculture and food supply, and presents a growing opportunity for development.

With more investment, Ojeleye believes, local small-scale production has the potential to go beyond satisfying local demands.

According to him, investment is crucial for the sector to grow sustainably and ensure a thriving bee population which has the potential to supply the country honey.

There are so many challenges in the industry, ranging  from importing huge volumes of low-cost honey from overseas, to insufficient labelling rules, and even outright cheating – whereby honey is mixed with cheaper ingredients.

So the people making big profits from honey sales in Nigeria are the importers and honey retail companies, not domestic beekeepers.

Ojeleye, also the founder, Centre for Bee Research and Development, Ibadan, Oyo State, has reported high bees’ colony loss rates, across the Southwest due to deforestation and attacks of herders.

In truth, honey is one of the most frequently adulterated products in the world.

Eminent beekeepers have long complained about being undercut by low-quality honey production. It is common for honey makers to blend honey with sugar – a practice that doesn’t meet international standards.

Given the lack of quality control mechanisms, the market is flooded with low-quality honey products.

Ojeleye noted that the honey industry is challenged with adulterated products that are passed off as original. He has seen requests to verify the origin of honey. Accusations of fraud have dogged the industry.

The problem, according to him, is that the sector remains largely self-regulated.

In most parts of the country, bee-keeping numbers are on a steady decline. The industry is ageing, and few young commercial beekeepers are entering.

Meanwhile, there is good news for the industry. U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)’s West Africa Trade & Investment Hub and Koster Keunen, a U.S. natural waxes company, are investing in the West African bee-keeping industry.

Koster Keunen is a leading expert in beeswax, with business on three continents, According to the company, its international footprint provides insight on the global impact of bee health. In relation, this programme will help to provide sustainably and ethically sourced beeswax.

The investment will increase the value of exports to the United States by more than $8 million, improve beekeeping practices for 11,200 smallholder farmers, and create 1,200 new jobs across West Africa.  Also, Koster Keunen in conjunction with USAID have started a new project in West Africa promoting growth and support of smallholder beekeepers in Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire (North), Ghana, Mali, Nigeria and Togo.

The two-year project will contribute more than $1.7 million and will focus on support and training of new and existing beekeepers.

Koster Keunen West Africa (KKWA) will provide training, support, beehives and protective equipment (PPE) across the region to support bee-keeping initiatives. Farmers will be trained on organic bee-keeping techniques from set up through wax collection, and year-round hive management. The inclusion of bee-keeping will increase crop pollination, food production and financial stability across the region. There will be an additional focus on biodiversity protection with the collaboration of expert beekeepers in the area.

Prior to this, beekeepers did not have the logistics or market to move their wax and honey out of their local area. The support KKWA provides is expected to change the dynamics and promote socially and ethically-responsible beeswax to the global market. The training will introduce a livelihood to thousands of new beekeepers, increase quality of life and embed sustainable bee-keeping practices in West Africa.

Furthermore, the US natural wax company is establishing West Africa’s first-organised, regional supply line of smallholder beekeepers, producing organic wax and honey that meet international standards.

Koster Keunen’s General Manager for West Africa, Sylvain Cattin, noted: “Our job is not only to produce and trade beeswax, it is to provide security to our customer in terms of quality and in terms of information around the three pillars of sustainability: economic, social and environmental impact.”

The Trade Hub’s deal with Koster Keunen supports Prosper Africa, a U.S. Government initiative to increase trade between the continents. Bringing the full range of U.S. Government resources, Prosper Africa connects U.S. and African businesses with new buyers, suppliers, and investment opportunities. Koster Keunen’s bee-keeping project is funded through the Trade Hub by Prosper Africa and its exports will go to U.S. buyers.

“We want to have a long-term commitment to the beekeeper and to show them that this is an activity that can be professional, and they can make good income,” says Cattin, adding: “But to do it the right way… to respect the environment, the bee colony.”

 

The Federal Government has clarified that TELA Maize, a new maize variety genetically modified to tolerate moderate drought and resist the fall armyworm and stem borer, is safe for cultivation and environment-friendly.

The Director-General/CEO National Biosafety Management Agency (NBMA), Dr. Rufus Ebegba who spoke exclusively to The Nation on Friday, was reacting to the growing criticism of the new maize variety.

The Nation reports the agency had granted the environmental approval for evaluation and open cultivation of the Maize.

The approval was contained in a certificate issued to the country’s Institute for Agricultural Research (IAR) whose researchers developed the variety.

Ebegba explained that the TELA maize has the potential to transform Nigeria’s farming communities with higher yields, better grain quality and higher farm income.

He said: “There is an application for genetically modified maize, it has some genes. One of the genes is for drought tolerance. Another one is for insect resistance. It has the ability to resist two types of insects — stem borer and fall armyworm.

“As a matter of fact, this particular maize has been used in South Africa over the years, and even the one approved by Kenya is different from the one approved by Nigeria.

READ ALSO: How to make Nigeria leader in maize production, by PwC

“On whether America has rejected the maize, I don’t think I have any record of that. And apart from that, if Nigeria decides to take some steps, it is based on our scientific knowledge and our circumstance.

“Nigeria has some of the best scientists we have in the world and that have served outside the country, so if Nigeria, based on scientific evidence, and experiences we’ve had over years, and we say we do find anything wrong with the GMOs, and it is safe with the environment, it can also help our family, it can be environmentally friendly, it can also add solid economic value, and what it means that is these crops can they can be grown in the areas that are prone to droughts and also less chemical to be used and you know the importance of less use of the chemical.”

He clarified that maize does not have any negative impact on human health, but rather has economic value.

Ebegba who urged the public not to be misled by misinformation peddled by different groups, or persons, re-emphasised that the agency will continue to sensitise the public and create more awareness on the importance of GMOs.

Changing diets and urbanisation have made Nigeria one of the largest wheat-importing countries, a trend the government wants reversed through interventions that target wheat import bill reduction, DANIEL ESSIET reports.

For some stakeholders in Nigeria, food security is achieved when households have access to sufficient wheat and other cereals.

This is due to the growing middle class diversification of diets towards cereals, leading to a significant increase in the share of wheat in caloric intake and processed foods.

Today, bread, semolina, pasta and other confectionaries made from wheat remain major staples in Nigeria. Wheat products such as doughs, noodles and spaghetti are available and affordable in the more-populated urban areas.

A  KPMG report estimated the Nigerian bread segment at N122.1 billion (US$621 million), representing 80 per cent of the baked goods sector while that of the biscuit segment was estimated at N121 billion.

Indeed, the country’s appetite for wheat has changed feed balances fundamentally. Apart from food processing industries, wheat holds household and personal importance. Particularly for the poor, it defines how daily budgets are allocated. One in every eight people eats bread; yet there is not enough wheat to feed the country. Domestic farming provides only a small part of national wheat requirements.

 

 Milling industry reliance on wheat

Wheat production is inadequate to meet growing demand, especially from millers.

Expansion in the flour milling sector also meant a rise in the imports of wheat. Nigeria’s wheat milling industry, according to Asoko Insight, a research firm, can produce eight million tonnes. It identified 26 grain processing firms in Nigeria, 20 of which can process one grain variety while six mill many varieties.

 

Growing imports

The rising growth of imports has also been fuelled by increased utilisation of wheat in feed rations.

Data from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) shows that between 2010 and 2020, as the consumption level of wheat rose, the country failed to grow more wheat; instead, it closed the shortfall in supply by significantly importing more wheat.

For the first quarter of this year, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reported that Nigeria spent N258.3 billion on wheat import.

Former Executive Director, Lake Chad Research Institute, Maiduguri, Borno State, Dr. Oluwasina Olabanji, said Nigeria requires 5.1 million tonnes of wheat yearly, but depends on imports to meet a huge deficit. According to him, Nigeria spends about $4.7 billion yearly  on wheat import.

He added that wheat consumption was bound to increase between now and 2050, due to the growing population, especially in the urban cities, if steps were not taken.

He noted: “In the 2019/2020 planting season, because some flour millers are doing backward integration and out-grower schemes, the expected metric tonnes of wheat would not be lesser than 150,000.” This underscores the importance of raising wheat production.

There is the eagerness to change the narrative, especially by reducing wheat imports through ramping up of domestic production, backed with new investor-friendly policies to attract local and foreign investors.

Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) ‘s response

Not only is the Federal Government enticing local and foreign investors into agro processing and production, but also in value chain. Happily,the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has concluded plans to reduce importation of wheat by 60 per cent over the next two years under its import substitution programme.

Its Governor, Godwin Emefiele, stated: “There is, therefore, no need to panic over the current prices of major staple food items.”

At a wheat conference and stakeholders’ engagement, with the theme “Improving and sustaining the wheat value chain development in Nigeria”, in Abuja, the Director, Development Finance Department CBN, Mr. Philip Yusuf, said wheat was the second-highest contributor to the country’s food import bill, putting pressure on its foreign reserve as over $2 billion was spent yearly on the import of over five million metric tonnes (mt) of wheat.

Furthermore, he estimated that only  one  per cent or 63,000mt of wheat, of the five to six million metric tonnes (mt) of wheat consumed yearly, was produced locally. He noted that the CBN intervention had become critical due to the high demand for wheat and the inability to meet that demand.

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mohammed Abubakar, who was represented by Abdullahi Garba, expressed dismay that the country’s wheat import and its import bills had continued to increase in recent years. He, therefore, urged stakeholders to collaborate to reverse the trend as the years go by investing more in the value chain.

 

Major boost for wheat research

The majority of wheat farmers are involved in small-scale farming. Their production capacity is constrained by limited access to key input—such as quality seeds, fertiliser, infrastructure, and technology.

In response, specialists are working on various strategies to raise wheat production and achieve self-sufficiency for the crop.

OCP Nigeria Fertilisers is partnering the Lake Chad Research Institute (LCRI), Institute of Agricultural Research and Training (IART), and Bayero University Kano (BUK) to raise national wheat production and boost farmers’ productivity.

Read Also: Communities reject Fed Govt’s $120m agro-industrial project

Its Head of Agronomy, Donald Madukwe, noted that the organisation was putting efforts into ensuring food security, and priority had been given to improving smallholder production and productivity.

The collaboration, according to him, lays out a roadmap for innovation and continued investment in wheat research and development.

Madukwe said OCP Africa was partnering research institutes to develop special wheat fertiliser that would ensure the maximum yield of crops per hectare. He said the new fertiliser formulation has been tested on farmer’s field’s invalidation trials in a large number of locations. The goal, according to him, is to get farmers who plant improved wheat varieties and follow recommended agronomic practices to harvest more tonnes per hectare in high-potential wheat-growing areas.

So far, characterising soils in wheat production belt to determine limiting nutrients based on which new fertiliser formulations are developed has taken place, he said.

He explained that the new specialised fertiliser when launched would reach a high number of farmers, thanks to effective teamwork between the various stakeholders.

He added that private firms would be invited to produce the new fertiliser formulation to bring the benefits to farming communities.

According to experts, wheat farmers in Nigeria numbering about 700,000 could begin to earn an additional N400,000 per hectare from next year, going by interventions by OCP Fertilisers Nigeria Limited. The move will also increase yield beyond 450,000 metric tonnes yearly forecast by the Wheat Growers Association of Nigeria.

Experts said a wheat farmer makes about N350,000 per hectare after deducting costs of production.

A Senior Research Fellow, Institute of Agricultural Research and Training (IAR&T), Moor Plantation, Ibadan, Dr. Vincent Aduramigba- Modupe, said there were reasons for encouraging farmers to grow more wheat.

Aduramigba-Modupe said the OCP project was conceptualised to develop fertiliser for land areas under cultivation. It would also increase production and enhance the entire wheat value chain.

According to them, high temperatures, often exceeding 38°C during  the  wheat growing season, severely limit crop performance and yield, while climate change, lower and inconsistent yields inhibit efforts, and severely reduce farmers’ incomes.

To boost agricultural output and ensure food security, a Director, Northern Nigeria Flour Mills, Alhaji Sani Umar, said the Flour Millers Association of Nigeria (FMAN) was working to expand irrigated wheat cultivation.

According to him, FMAN is assisting small-scale farmers in Kano, Jigawa and Kebbi states to increase productivity through an adequate supply of modern agricultural input, and that it has been facilitating market access for farmers by increasing quality and quantity of their production for local consumption.

In furtherance of its commitment to achieve self-sufficiency in wheat production, Umar said the association had established a demonstration farm and conducted field trials for soft wheat seeds from Mexico and Sudan.

He said the wheat variety was suitable for making pasta products, including noodles.

With the growing popularity of wheat and wheat-based products in Nigeria, he said FMAN was ready to support the CBN in the development of the value chain in Nigeria.

FMAN farmers support initiative provides broad interventions to farmers including better access to improved inputs such as certified wheat seed, fertiliser, and enhanced techniques focused on lowering seeding rates, row planting, and balanced fertiliser use.

Last November, FMAN said it was set to intensify its collaborations with private agriculture development institutions – Oxford and Babban Gona – to boost wheat production through its out-growers scheme for 8,000 smallholder farmers in Kano, Jigawa, and Kebbi.

Other countries following suit

Morocco produced just 640,000 tonnes of barley last year and was forced to import one million tonnes, according to the then  Global Agricultural Information Network report from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).

To protect local wheat producers from foreign competition, the Moroccan government on May 12, this year, announced an increase from zero to 135 per cent in common wheat duties and from zero to 170 per cent in durum wheat duties.

In a related development, the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) forecast that global wheat production was expected to reach a new record of 780 million tonnes this year.

The record forecast reflects an anticipated rebound in production in the European Union (EU) that is expected to more than offset weather-impacted production prospects for output in the Russian Federation.

Also, global cereal stocks are now forecast by the FAO to end 2021 at 811 million tonnes, which would be 0.9 per cent  below opening levels.

 

The Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) Ibadan Export Assistance office has advised yam farmers in Oyo State on the best practices in global yam export.

The advice came during training organised for yam farmers by the NEPC in Kishi, Oyo State recently during which yam farmers were trained by agricultural experts.

The technical workshop titled ‘Good agricultural practices, post-harvest handlings and packaging of yam for export’ featured 525 yam farmers and off-takers in and around the south West states.

Facilitating a session, a technical expert from the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan, Professor Abdulganiyu Raji, advised the participants to always observe the right protocols in planting, harvesting and storing yams.

“We can plant in three ways; we can plant on the ground like we have been doing, we can plant in water known as hydroponics, we can plant in the bags. We have seen people who planted 2,000 yams in bags in their homes,” he said.

Raji added that the IITA has continued to develop yam seedlings that have the capacity to withstand pests and diseases.

“We are planning to help develop more yam seedlings that will not have diseases and pests that destroy yams. The seedlings we have developed do not accommodate pests.

“We have over 100,000 of these yam seedlings now. We are still continuing the research to see what we can add more to improve them,” he said.

Talking about packaging, he said farmers must be vast in yam packaging because yam market is particular about packaging.

“Consumers in the countries our farmers export to don’t eat yams in pounded yam or amala form like we do; they eat in smaller kilograms. They want just 1kg which can only be sufficient for a family of four. If the yams are over 1kg they would not buy except for our people over there,” he added, advising exporters to mind the kilogrammes they package.

In his lecture titled: ‘Good agricultural practices and packaging to meet demands of the export markets’, Akindele Ogunfunmilayo from the Nigerian Agricultural Quarantine Services (NAQS), Oyo State provided education on what yam farmers need to scale through the NAQS inspection.

“Different countries have their yam specifications and Nigerian yam exporters must understand this. If you don’t meet conditions of the country you are exporting to, there will be a problem, so you must know what each country needing yams wants,” he said.

Continuing he said: “Those countries you are sending the yams to don’t want marks on the yams, they want it well packaged and rats must not have access to your yams.

“The yams must not get rotten and it must not be infected before getting to destination. It must not be contaminated. Packaging is very important.”

Answering questions on why NAQS must inspect the yams,

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Ogunfunmilayo said: “The agency must inspect not just because of pests but for diseases. Yams going on export must be well inspected. They must not have any disease and we have to duly document.

“Once we inspect and the yams are good to go, we will issue a certificate. If you don’t have this certificate, you will encounter difficulties at the destination.

“Some countries were not asking for the certificates before but things have since changed. So you must have certificate from quarantine service.”

However, he added that the yams must be uniform in size and colour as well as must be duly labeled to indicate details like nutritional contents and net weight so they are not sent back from the destination.

An off-taker at the event and the CEO, Jimest Foods Limited, Abuja, Mrs. Esther Adebayo, demonstrated how to properly package yam in cartons for export.

Adebayo, who exports yams to the United States of America lamented: “Our farmers don’t know the channels to use in exporting their yams.” She added that, “The extension workers who are supposed to enlighten farmers are not enlightened about the planting, fertilizer application, harvesting and storage.”

Adebayo added: “Before I was given permission to export, I went through stages of preparation and learning. I observed all the protocols. For instance during raining season, you need to use wet foam to mop the tubers to remove sand from them.

You must use soft foam because the yams must not peel. If they get peeled, they are disqualified.”

The Trade Promotion Advisor, NEPC, Ibadan Export Assistance Office, Mrs. Bolanle Emmanuel, who enjoined the farmers to cooperate among themselves so they can enjoy maximum benefit from information being disseminated by the NEPC.

“The Nigerian Export Promotion Council is saddled with the responsibility of promoting non-oil export and yam being an agricultural produce in high demand around the world must be promoted. That is why we have brought experts to lecture our yam farmers,” she said.