Agriculture
Cassava Utilisation: Council Urges Encouragement, Training
Director-General, Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC) Prof. Peter Onwualu, said on Tuesday in Abuja that Nigeria did not need a law to encourage cassava utilisation.
Onwualu said rather than official policy, aggressive promotion, encouragement and training would encourage millers and bakers to embrace the use of cassava as part of composite flour.
He said at a forum of the News Agency of Nigeria’s (NAN) that though cassava was primarily used as food, it could be used as industrial raw material and for the manufacture of more than 1000 different products.
He said that over the years, the RMRDC had been partnering with flour millers on how to add 10 per cent or 20 per cent cassava flour to the normal flour for baking.
“We consider cassava as an industrial raw material. Of course you know cassava has many uses; you can have up to 1000 different products from cassava, so it’s not just cassava flour.
“We are talking about cassava flour because that’s an area that if we succeed, the quantum of flour that can be used can be enormous and therefore we can reduce a lot of foreign exchange.
“The ultimate thing is to get bakers, confectionary producers, everybody who needs flour to start using it.
“The idea was that if they agree to start using this then naturally, their suppliers will know that they are also looking for high quality cassava flour as well as wheat.
“And so those suppliers will begin to look for those who can produce this high quality cassava flour.
Onwualu also told NAN that there had been attempts in the past to make flour millers to add percentages of cassava that was recommended alongside wheat, but such had not yielded much result.
He said that if millers had cooperated fully, those who intended to go into high quality cassava milling would have been guaranteed ready market.
The director-general said the frustration in getting the required machines for full cassava processing was a major challenge in the cassava industry, but assured that the RMRDC was already partnering to get involve local fabricators.
He particularly pointed at high quality cassava flash dryer, which he said posed a major challenge to fabricate locally in the past, but expressed satisfaction that with the intervention of the RMRDC, good local fabricators of the machines had emerged.
Onwualu urged entrepreneurs to take advantage of the technology to begin the production of high quality cassava flash dryers.
“So you can have like 1000 or 2000 of such cassava mills all over the country run by private people not by a research institute or a government agency and they will be producing and then some business men can buy from them and supply to the millers or to the bakers.
“Another approach would be to train bakers and people who make cakes and so on to know how they can do the mixing.
“And we have thousands of bakers and if these people were trained and they agree and they are motivated to go into this, you don’t need any National Assembly or anybody to enact a law.
“They can just gradually be using this; 10 per cent 20 per cent as long as they adhere to the quality and actually NAFDAC has a standard for high quality cassava flour.
“If you conform to that we are sure that that flour is safe and so I believe that this is the way to go.
Onwualu also called for greater empowerment of private sector operators to enable them to change their production line and harness research findings in cassava flour production.
He said that if fully implemented and bakers as well as mixers began to use cassava flour, the economy would be the better for it.
He said that although Nigeria was already the largest producer of cassava, a lot of work still had to be done in the area of value addition.
Onwualu told NAN that the council had investment profiles on the many uses of cassava and was willing to share such with willing investors.
Federal Government and the Ogun State Government, on Wednesday, distributed farm inputs to farmers as part of effort to address food security challenge.
The State Director, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Dr. Toyin Ayo-Ajayi, during the flag-off ceremony of Inputs Redemption Under The National Agricultural Growth Scheme-Agro Pocket (NAGS-AP), in Ogun State, disclosed that beneficiaries of the gesture were primarily rice, maize and cassava farmers across the State.
Ayo-Ajayi commended the Ogun State Government for partnering with the government at the centre for the effort in supporting farmers with inputs that would bring about yieldings for local consumption and likely exportation.
She noted that government is supporting rice, cassava and maize farmers with inputs worth N212,000; N189,000 and N186,000 respectively.
The Permanent Secretary in the State Ministry of Agriculture, Mrs Kehinde Jokotoye, who represented the Commissioner in the Ministry, Bolu Owotomo, stated that traditional farmers are critical in food production, hence the need to encourage and support them with inputs that would bring about desired results during harvesting.
Owotomo said: “Let us make good use of this opportunity, so that the success of this phase will make farmers benefit more from the state and federal governments of Nigeria.”
Earlier, State Coordinator, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Dr. Oluwatoyin Ayo-Ajayi, appreciated the present administration for partnering with the federal government for the initiative, adding that the programme is designed to support farmers at the grassroots level in cassava, rice and maize with inputs such as, seeds, pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers, to boost their production and enhance their livelihood.
The Niger State Government has mapped out 10,000 hectares of farmland in Gbapo Community of Katcha Local Government Area of the State for smallholder farmers to benefit from the state government’s agricultural intervention programme.
Two thousand out of the 10,000 holders of the farmlands have already received inputs.
At a flag-off ceremony in Yinti Village, the facilitator of the programme, Shinkafan Nupe, Malam Idris Usman Makanta, assured the farmers of increased distributions to the mapped-out ten thousand (10,000) farmlands if farmers respond positively.
He explained that the commencement of the two thousand is to measure the positive response of farmers before obtaining full-scale support.
Malam Makanta stated that this initiative aligns with the farmers’ initial commitment through Niger Foods, whose mission is primarily geared towards establishing efficient and profitable agricultural businesses to support the present administration of Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago’s quest to boost agricultural productivity in the state.
He also commended Niger Foods for their steadfastness and resilience in the effective implementation of the input financing scheme.
Makanta reiterated the commitment of the State Governor in making judicious use of the arable land in the state.
Shinkafan Nupe, therefore, urged the farmers to support the Governor by using the inputs wisely so that the dream can be actualised.
The Gombe State Government has empowered a total of 573,429 farmers and entrepreneurs under the 4th phase of the GO-CARES programme.
The programme was officially flagged off by Governor Inuwa Yahaya in another major step towards alleviating poverty and supporting the state’s vulnerable populations.
The Governor, while inaugurating the disbursement in Akko Community of Akko Local Government Area, restated his administration’s commitment to the welfare of vulnerable citizens in the state.
He was represented by the Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Salihu Baba Alkali, who is also the Chairman of the Steering Committee on GO- CARES implementation.
“The 4th phase of GO-CARES will directly and indirectly impact a total of 573,429 citizens across the state. Of these, 152,429 individuals will benefit directly through cash transfers, livelihood grants, agricultural inputs, and operational grants to small businesses”, he stated.
The Governor added that, “421,000 people will be indirect beneficiaries through infrastructural projects such as classroom blocks, healthcare facilities, WASH services, and rural infrastructure projects like culverts and drainages”.
Yahaya, reaffirmed his commitment to ensuring that the state’s most vulnerable citizens are not left behind in the state’s development.
According to him, “Earlier this year, on June 25, 2024, we flagged off the distribution of improved seedlings, fertilizers, and herbicides to less privileged farmers in Malam Sidi, Kwami Local Government Area, signaling the commencement of the 4th phase implementation of GO-CARES under Result Area 2”.
The Governor reiterated that these initiatives have had a significant impact on the livelihoods of beneficiaries and the overall agricultural sector.
He explained that, “Today’s ceremony marked the simultaneous launch of activities under all three GO-CARES Result Areas for the 4th phase. These areas include: State Cash Transfer Grants: 2,500 direct beneficiaries; Labour Intensive Public Works: 2,700 direct beneficiaries; Livelihood Grants: 10,000 direct beneficiaries; and Basic Services: 405,000 indirect beneficiaries”.