[INVESTMENT]
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Uduak Umo is a Chartered PR Consultant and Public Interest Researcher
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| Tomato Demonstration Farm in Akwa Ibom |
Regular
readers of Jabborro.com posts would have met my report on how Akwa Ibom was
working towards meeting the Federal Government of Nigeria’s tomato paste
production objective. It was carried on a few print media and websites as well.
Please find it here.
Not long
after that report, price of fresh Tomato skyrocketed by about 400%. Tuta
Absoluta, a crop pest that originated from South America, became resistant to
pesticide and this was blamed immediately, although a combination of it and
other factors actually caused the inflation.
Now, the
inflation caused many damages across the nation. Yet, I know of 2 experiment
farms that neither suffer the plague nor fail to make profit. They thrive in
the epidemic, thanks to collaboration with AKEES – Akwa ibom Enterprise &
Employment Scheme.
Here is a
mild analysis of their enviable turnover even as a trial farm.
Other Reasons for Scarcity and Inflation
of Tomatoes, than Tuta Absoluta
- Some farmers
up north have abandoned planting tomatoes as they cannot afford the high cost
of petrol to power water pumping machines for irrigation.
- Most of
the villages where these tomatoes are planted are experiencing heavy rainfall.
They have to stop planting as the specie they plant doesn’t thrive in rain.
- “Most of
the women who bought tomatoes in large quantities have dried them and are now
selling them to us dried” - Northern traders.
- In March
this year, the Dangote tomato paste factory in Kano, northern Nigeria, began
operations to a maximum capacity of about 430,000 tons of tomato paste.
- Major
tomato sellers in northern Nigeria have taken to selling their product to the
factory instead of sending them down to the south
- These
tomato farmers have seen that selling their produce to the Dangote factory will
help them avoid certain costs, including the cost of transportation form the
north to south
Tuta
Absoluta struck the fresh tomato market merely 1 week to harvest at the Uyo
demonstration farm. The means the Uyo farm, which started selling just
following the rise in prices, have sold tomato worth #4.6million; more than
double the projection.
At the demo
farms, AKEES has worked out trainings in imported technology, tried out disease
resistant species, tested effectiveness of fungicides, planted and harvested
tens of tones, provided jobs to indigenes, and essentially demonstrated the
workability of several fast selling cash crops and veggies.
Mr. Langwa
Brezhnev, an expatriate working with AKEES on these farms - specifically
providing the technology, techniques, and training - has this to say:
“This project was not
sent to only AKEES, but those who did not believe in the project shelved it. A
lot of people saw the project as a scam and nothing to write about. But it can
now be realized that these things can work here through this experiment
promoted by AKEES.
If you plant
tomato well in 2 hectares of land, you will harvest between 20 and 30 tonnes,
which is 30,000kg. If a kilogram remains sold for N500, you should be expecting
N15 million in 8 weeks”.
CHECK SLIDES HERE
Uduak Umo is a Chartered PR Consultant and Public Interest Researcher
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