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Tag: sorghum

  • Nigeria’s sorghum production to exceed seven million tonnes yearly

    Nigeria’s sorghum production to exceed seven million tonnes yearly

    Nigeria’s yearly sorghum production may exceed seven million tonnes, going by efforts deployed by the Institute for Agricultural Research (IAR), Ahmadu Bello University and the brewery operators to boost cultivation to save forex.

    IAR is joining forces to advance research into new varieties of the product.

     Sorghum has created a multi-billion dollar market as global beer makers are canvassing its increase for brewing.

    As of last year, the production of sorghum in Nigeria, according to Statista, global research behemoth, was estimated at seven million metric tonnes.

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    Speaking with The Nation, Executive Director of IAR, Prof Mohammad Faguji Ishiyaku, hinted that the varieties developed by the institute earn farmers a record 1.3 tonnes yield per hectare as against 500 kilogramme per hectare.

    The three sorghum varieties released by the institute were SAMSORG 52,   SAMSORG 53 and SAMSORG 54, all early maturing cultivars.

     He also explained that IAR scientists were working on biofortified sorghum varieties, which would generate yields superior to the varieties.

    Ishiyaku indicated that Sorghum was one of the few cereals that are not imported and its use in several industries is contributing to increased investment in production development. These include animal feed, and confectionery, especially beer.

    Early this year, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Breweries Plc., Mr Hans Essaadi, had expressed commitment to import substitution by investing in local sourcing of raw materials to support the growth and development of the country’s agriculture sector.

    He said the company’s collaboration with local and international research institutes had been expanded to further assess and improve the performance and adaptability of selected registered local sorghum varieties.

    According to him, the collaboration would help in the development of new sorghum varieties with improved quality for the industry and increased yield for farmers.

    Essaadi said the company had been working with some institutes on trials for sorghum with higher yield varieties in northern Nigeria. He said the outcome of the trials was beneficial to farmers, adding that it would be made known soon.

    This year, the Federal Government said African Development Bank’s (AfDB’s) $134 million allocation to Nigeria for the production of sorghum, rice, maize and soybean.

    Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Ernest Umakhihe said under the Policy Base Operations (PBO), a Sector Budget Support (SBS) project prepared under the African Emergency Food Production Facility (AEFPF) and funded through a loan from the AfDB, a total sum of $134 million was allocated to Nigeria to support the production of sorghum, wheat other key crops such as rice, maize and soya bean.

     He said it would be implemented through the National Agricultural Growth Scheme and Agro Pocket (NAGSAP). Also, the President, Sorghum Farmers Association of Nigeria (SOFAN), Alhaji Lawal Gada, said Nigeria has achieved self-sufficiency in sorghum production.

    Gada said Nigeria is exporting sorghum to neighboring countries, including Niger Republic and other West African nations. In the last five years, Nigeria’s sorghum production has suffered a mixed record, according to data by the International Trade Centre (ITC) and others.

    Analysts noted that given its vast arable land, Nigeria should be able to produce an estimated 13.5million tonnes yearly.

    National Association of Sorghum Producers, Processors and Marketers of Nigeria (NASPPAM) said it was mobilising 400,000 farmers to participate in wet season sorghum farming.

    The association said it is targeting the production of sorghum in over two million hectares.

  • Wheat, sorghum imports cost N428b

    Nigerians spent  over N428 billion on20 the importation of wheat and sorghum in 2015, Central Bank of Nigeria  (CBN) Governor Godwin Emefeile has said.

    He spoke in Kano during the inauguration of the Northern Nigeria Flour Mill Plc’s Sorghum Milling Plant.

    The facility which is  expected to serve as a local source for raw materials, is  estimated to have cost N2 billion.

    Emefiele, who was represented by the Deputy Governor, Cooperate Service Directorate, Alhaji Suleiman Barau, said the huge spent bills on the importation of these products, informed the decision of the apex bank to boost and sustain the local production of agric products, such as rice, wheat, cassava, fish and poultry, among others.

    He said 513 projects across the country have been financed by Commercial Agricultural Credit Scheme (CACS), adding that a total of 604 projects have equally been financed under  the Real Sector Refinancing Project (RSFP).

    He said these interventions are the outcome of the collaboration between the apex bank and the Presidential Task Force on Food Security, aimed at boasting agricultural production, employment and wealth creation.

    Emefiele said the CBN will continue to support any venture that will save the nation’s foreign exchange, an area where the firm has demonstrated strong commitment to pursue.

    In her remarks, Minister of State, Industry, Trade and Investment, Hajia Aihsa Abubakar, said the commissioning of the milling plant was unique in the sense that it would serve as a real boost in sourcing raw materials locally and will have positive impacts on local farmers/out growers.

    She said the commissioning of the plant directly aligned with the vision of the administration’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP),  designed to promote and sustain an inclusive growth in the implementation of Nigeria’s Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP) .

    She said the plan also focused on areas in which Nigeria has comparative advantage that would guarantee competiveness in the global market and increase manufacturing contribution to the gross domestic product (GDP) in the next five years.

    The minister said the plan, which was presently being implemented, would strategically unlock bottlenecks militating against the growth and development of the industrial sector, adding that government was also reducing the encumbrances that were affecting industrial development.

  • New sorghum variety unveiled

    The release of two new nutritionally high sorghum varieties, will be a boost for farmers and the malnourished population, especially children,  Scientist, Sorghum Breeding International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT)-Nigeria, Dr Ignatius Angarawai, has said. One of them is three times higher in iron content

    Both varieties have yields that double local ones and have short duration, allowing farmers to adapt better to climate change.

    One of the new varieties, according to Angarawai, has iron content three times higher at 128.99 part/million (ppm)compared to 40 ppm.

    The improved varieties yield 2.4-2.8 tonnes per hectares, compared to yields of less than one tonne per hectare from local varieties. Initial screenings were encouraging as they showed that the new varieties were resistant to Striga compared to other varieties in the trial.

    “Sorghum has been recommended for infants, the elderly, pregnant and lactating mothers because of its high caloric and nutritional value. There are cases of ‘hidden hunger’ (deficit of iron and zinc) among low income farmers, who sell most of their produce. Sorghum is naturally high in iron and zinc,” said Angarawai.

    He said: “The newly released varieties can help overcome periods of drought, especially terminal drought problems prevalent in the Sahel and Sudan savannah agro-ecologies of Nigeria because they are early maturing, with 50 per cent  flowering in 67 days against the average 90 days for other varieties.”

    The improved open pollinated varieties were developed by a team of scientists in the Nigerian national agricultural research system and ICRISAT. The new varieties involved crossing local Nigerian germplasm with improved lines from ICRISAT’s collection in Mali.

  • Sorghum production gets boost

    A major boost may have come the way of the agricultural sector.

    Last week, the Federal Govern-ment signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a Chinese firm, Sang-Liang Technology Development Centre (STDC), to grow sweet sorghum in the country.

    The MoU, signed by the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC) on behalf of the Federal Government, The Nation learnt,  is part of the Council’s efforts to add value to local raw materials to stimulate employment and create wealth.

    According to the Deputy Director of Public Affairs Unit of RMRDC, Mr. Chuks Ngaha, the develop-ment is in line with the Council’s mandate of developing raw materials and facilitating the adoption of machinery and processes for raw materials utilisation.

    “The agreement with STDC is for the processing and development of sweet sorghum into food and industrial and energy products to add value to local raw materials and create wealth,’’ he explained

    He said the Council would receive the sole franchise for the distribution of the improved sweet sorghum seedlings, planting materials and its technology in West Africa.

    “The Council seeks to domesticate the technology for sweet sorghum production and processing in Nigeria. Consequently, the agreement includes joint establishment of a comprehensive industrial model project on the development of sweet sorghum,’’ Ngaha said.

    According to him, STDC will provide technical support and expertise, including conducting the initial soil testing and other related activities. The council said it would also partner Niger State Government for land provision for the pilot project of cultivating improved sweet sorghum seeds.

    He added that the state government provided some hectares of land for the project. “This collaboration shall also see STDC facilitating the replication of the sweet sorghum village industry in other states of the federation.

    “The Council is already engaged in discussions with various stakeholders in Taraba, Adamawa, Kebbi, Bauchi and Gombe states to fashion out areas of collaboration on the project,’’ the statement added.

    The Director-General, RMRDC, Dr Hussaini Doko, represented the Federal Government while Mr. Lyu Wei represented STDC in the signing of the MOU.

  • Firm, ministry partner on hybrid sorghum development

    Nigerian Breweries Plc has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) to collaborate on the development and commercialisation of sorghum as part of its sustainability programme.

    Speaking at the ceremony, which took place at the minister’s conference room in Abuja, the Chairman of Nigerian Breweries Plc, Chief Kola Jamodu said the company has invested heavily over the years in the research and development of hybrid sorghum aimed at improving sorghum productivity through breeding and selection programme.

    He expressed optimism that the partnership  will further expand and strengthen the company’s efforts in developing the sorghum value chain in Nigeria.

    Jamodu pledged the commitment of Nigerian Breweries to deploy the high yield hybrid sorghum seeds for large scale commercial production to support the agriculture transformation agenda of the federal government. He praised the  Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, for his focus and commitment in driving the agriculture transformation agenda, pointing out that the initiative has recorded commendable success so far.

    He pointed out that Nigeria has no business depending on food importation hence the need for backward integration. He stated that the ban on barley importation in the 1980s and 1990s made the company to seek for local alternatives; this was what formed the basis for the research into local alternatives. Even after the ban was lifted, the chairman said the company maintained its stand on sourcing local substitute for barley.

    As a result of the backward integration which he describes as “the only way we can create jobs,” Chief Jamodu stated that 250,000 jobs have been created as a result of the introduction of the new hybrid seeds.

    Responding, Dr Adesina welcomed the partnership and thanked the company for its efforts in developing the sorghum value chain, especially the research and development of hybrid sorghum seeds.

    He also applauded the commitment of Jamodu to the development of the country’s economy through his selfless service at the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) and as a member of the National Economic Management Team.

    The minister, who described himself as “a great fan of Maltina” (one of the products of Nigerian Breweries) said agriculture, is serious business because elsewhere like in the US “farmers are some of the richest people around” pointing out that we have no business importing food because we have all the potentials – sunshine, cheap labour, diverse ecological environment and rivers  to be self-sufficient.

    He applauded the research done by the company which produced the hybrid seeds that opened new windows of opportunities for Nigerian farmers because sorghum is no longer a subsistence seed, but one needed by industries “which is one of the best ways in creating jobs for Nigerians.”

    By adding value to Nigerian farmers, Adesina also commended the company for its ongoing research in using cassava syrup to replace sugar. The hybrid seeds increased farmers yield from 0.5 tonnes to 4 million metric tonnes in less than two years and presently 2.5 million farmers will have access to the seeds as the Ministry and Nigerian Breweries organise them into buying clusters where they can have easy access to purchase the seeds.

    The Minister reiterated his commitment to the agriculture transformation agenda and the preparedness of the Ministry to involve credible stakeholders in the development of the sorghum seed sector, as well as provide seed companies access to finance through the Seed Venture Capital Fund (SVCF).