Nigeria Leads in Cowpea Production, Deficit in Consumption - Experts

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Experts in cowpea production, processing and consumption have unanimously agreed that despite the fact that Nigeria has been leading in pulses and cowpea production, findings have revealed that the nation's citizens record deficit in consumption.

The experts made this known during the joint programme organised as part of the 2016/2017 international year of pulses and cowpea day celebration in Kano organised by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in collaboration with Kano Agricultural and Rural Development Authority (KNARDA) and other agricultural development agencies in Katsina and Sokoto.

According to this year's celebration's coordinator Professor Ado A.Yusuf, the cowpea celebration programme is aimed at heightening public awareness of the nutritional benefits of pulses in addition to its economic values as part of sustainable food production aimed towards food security and nutrition through creation of unique opportunity to encourage connections throughout the food chain that would better utilize pulse-based proteins, further global production of pulses and address the challenges in the trade of pulses.

Similarly, representative of KNARDA at the occasion, the Director Extension, Malam Sadi Ibrahim stated that, the programme wouldn't have come in a better time than now. According to him, there is a need for the farmers to understand that aside cowpea production and processing there is a need for the public to be enlightened on the good side of pulses and cowpea consumption.