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The General Manager, Bauchi Agricultural
Supply company (BASAC), Alhaji Kabiru Sade, says Bauchi State has the
potential of producing 450,000 tonnes of unprocessed wheat annually.
Sade made the disclosure when he spoke with the Food Farm News (FFN)in Bauchi on Sunday.
He said a survey conducted by Bauchi State Agricultural Development Programme (BSADP) revealed that the state had over 150,000 hectares of arable land for wheat production which was lying fallow.
He said “the BSADP Crop Area Yield Survey indicates that from Tilde Fulani to Jama’are, River Dindima, Darazo and Kirfi and some areas in all the 20 local government areas, can produce wheat.
“The state during IBB’s mass production of wheat scheme, cultivated about 25,000 hectares out of the figure and participating farmers reaped between 30 bags and 100 bags of the produce.
“If the state government will re-introduce wheat production, it will generate huge foreign exchange for the state and the country at large,’’ Sade said.
He faulted the phasing out of river basin authorities by the Federal Government, which according to him, has killed the irrigated agriculture that supplements the rain fed agriculture.
The agronomist, who is also a researcher, suggested that “government must look at agriculture as commercial venture and not subsistence farming if it would de-emphasise dependence on oil’’.
He said government must encourage farmers to embark on modern agronomy practice to attract modern reality.
The general manager also faulted the saying that “market forces should determine prices’’, and urged government to create marketing boards and fix minimum price.
“If government wants to embark on agriculture to attract foreign exchange, it should establish scheme like wheat and other crops that can attract foreign buyers.
“It should resuscitate river basins, establish more dams, re-establish marketing boards and revamps flour mills that can facilitate value addition,’’ he said.
Sade made the disclosure when he spoke with the Food Farm News (FFN)in Bauchi on Sunday.
He said a survey conducted by Bauchi State Agricultural Development Programme (BSADP) revealed that the state had over 150,000 hectares of arable land for wheat production which was lying fallow.
He said “the BSADP Crop Area Yield Survey indicates that from Tilde Fulani to Jama’are, River Dindima, Darazo and Kirfi and some areas in all the 20 local government areas, can produce wheat.
“The state during IBB’s mass production of wheat scheme, cultivated about 25,000 hectares out of the figure and participating farmers reaped between 30 bags and 100 bags of the produce.
“If the state government will re-introduce wheat production, it will generate huge foreign exchange for the state and the country at large,’’ Sade said.
He faulted the phasing out of river basin authorities by the Federal Government, which according to him, has killed the irrigated agriculture that supplements the rain fed agriculture.
The agronomist, who is also a researcher, suggested that “government must look at agriculture as commercial venture and not subsistence farming if it would de-emphasise dependence on oil’’.
He said government must encourage farmers to embark on modern agronomy practice to attract modern reality.
The general manager also faulted the saying that “market forces should determine prices’’, and urged government to create marketing boards and fix minimum price.
“If government wants to embark on agriculture to attract foreign exchange, it should establish scheme like wheat and other crops that can attract foreign buyers.
“It should resuscitate river basins, establish more dams, re-establish marketing boards and revamps flour mills that can facilitate value addition,’’ he said.
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