Cassava President calls for farmers' sensitization on planting edible cuttings

The President, National Cassava Growers Association of Nigeria (NCGA) Alhaji Mustapha Othman has called for immediate farmers' training on cassava cutting either in edible or industrial variety.

 Mustapha Othman in a voice message sent to Foodfarmnews last week Tuesday said this training has become very inevitable in view of the recent incidence in Gombe where ten people were hospitalized for eating poisoned cassava possibly suspected to be an industrial variety which was mistakenly sold as edible to people.

 Othman pointed out that incidence like this would only be averted if farmers are properly trained to be able to differentiate between edible and industrial cassava cuttings.

 The Punch newspaper's report also confirmed that one person is dead while ten others had been hospitalized due to what is suspected to be an industrial cassava consumption.

 The commissioner for health, Gombe state, Dr. Habu Dahiru in the report called upon cassava farmers to desist from selling products with high content of hydrogen cyanide following a death case and 10 others who are hospitalized in the state. 

The commissioner harped that people should fear of God in their business dealing, asking farmers to ensure only production of edible cassava popularly known as "Farinn rogo" were planted for consumption while they must avoid the bitter variety call toed Bakinn rogo which contains huge amounts of cyanide.