The devastating floods which plunged great swaths of agricultural land under water would exacerbate food insecurity.
Already, the economy has seen more than 50 per cent rise in the prices of rice, maize and wheat since the beginning of last year, attributed to fertiliser shortage, surging diesel prices.
President, Federation of Agricultural Commodities Association of Nigeria(FACAN), Dr Victor Iyama said the outcome of the flooding situation has sparked soaring grains.
According to him, a new food crisis looms as the country faces a likely rise in the prices of many staples on many tables.
Vice Chairman, All Farmers Association Of Nigeria (AFAN), Otunba Femi Oke noted that the impact of the flooding was going to be major strain on food security.
According to him, the recent floods would lead to a spike in grains.
He reiterated that consumers should expect price increases as the toll of extreme flooding on food security apparent it has damaged rice crops, and also threatened grain supply.
Chief Executive Officer, AFEX, Ayodeji Balogun believes better storage of harvest of crops could ease pressures on food security .
Balogun said: “Over the years, we have seen a growing demand for grain commodities in the animal feed, food, and drink industries. However, N3.5 trillion is lost annually after harvest because the national storage capacity can only accommodate five to seven percent of agricultural produce.”
In partnership with the Kaduna State government and the USAID-Funded West Africa Trade & Investment , AFEX has launched a multi-million project to reduce N3.5 trillion grains losses recorded annually after harvest because the national storage capacity can only accommodate five to seven percent of agricultural produce.
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Balogun, noted,”At AFEX, we believe that the grain quality enhancement center will help meet that demand, support the closure of quality and quantity gaps, maximize income returns for smallholder farmers, and increase access to markets that will benefit key players in the value chain and society at large.”
To this, he said the firm launched a new 100,000 metric tonne(MT )annual capacity grain quality enhancement center and a 30,000 MT storage capacity warehouse in Kaduna State. However, a positive outlook is expected for Nigeria’s grains industry with reviewed international efforts to boost domestic grain production as Russia’s war in Ukraine continues to destabilise global food security .
African Development Bank(AfDB) and other organisations have launched multimillion support projects to boost grains production in Nigeria and the rest of Africa as well as seek new supply routes .
Under the Emergency Food Production Facility, AfDB said it will release up to $1.5 billion to tackle a looming food crisis on the continent, by supporting local production of grains and other crops.The money will go to purchasing of certified seed, fertiliser and better farming technology, for 20 million farmers across the continent.
The bank aimed through its emergency food production facility, a $1.5 billion project, to raise African yield of food production to 38 million tonnes by end of the year.
In its June grain market report, International Grains Council (IGC) put Nigeria’s total 2022-23 grains production at 21.6 million tonnes, a figure revised up from the previous month’s forecast of 21.1 million. It put 2021-22 production at 21.5 million.