Nigeria stands to make N46 billion profit annually from PBR Cowpea yield — IAR

The Executive Director, Institute for Agricultural Research, (IAR), Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria (ABU), Professor Mohammad F. Ishyaku has said that Nigeria stands to make profit of N46 billion annually as a result of the yield margin from the Pod Bore Resistant, PBR Cowpea variety.

This was even as he said the Nigerian farmers were also to save N16 billion spent on the spray of insecticides annually against the Maruca insect which often destroys farm produce of the farmers.

Prof. Ishyaku who doubles as the Principal Investigator of the variety stated this during a press briefing to commemorate one year of the release of PBR Cowpea to farmers in Kano.

He said unlike in the past when farmers spray their farms eight times against the insect, with the new Cowpea variety, farmers are now to spray their farms only twice.

According to him, “Three years ago, we have estimated that for every one hectare of this variety of cowpea planted, our farmers are bound to save not less than N5,400 from spraying interms of cost of insecticides. By the time you add that to the cost of labour of spraying and health challenges from handling hazardous chemicals, the amount will be high. We estimated not less than N16 billion annually will be benefitted by our farmers from the cost of spraying chemicals or insecticides if only one million hectares of this variety were planted. Then the cost of insecticides was about N1,000 but about N2,000 now. So, they will even save more.

“Equally, in terms of the yield margin, Nigeria can make close to N46 billion annually as a result of increase in yield margin of about 25 per cent of other varieties. We shall get more cowpeas, more benefits and even for export,” Prof. Ishyaku said

On the growing demand for the variety, the executive director said it has set up a committee, stewardship committee to to guarantee the integrity of the new variety against the nefarious invasion of adulterators.

“For the purpose of ensuring integrity and purity of the seeds, we have a stewardship committee in place who are to ensure that the quality of the variety are guaranteed.

“From the testimonies you have heard from the farmers here, it means that our annual cowpea demand deficit which is around half a million tonnes, with increase production this variety will reduce the gap. We will institute another study in the next two or more years to ascertain how this variety has reduced the level of importations.

“As for the anti-GMO, we don’t want to take them to court because it will become a legal struggle when you take them to court. We show scientific evidence of the safety of this variety and the integrity in solving our national problem. Now that farmers are seeing how productive the variety is, we will leave them (anti-GMO) in the court of the farmers and nigerians.h

“PBR cowpea has been tested and certified by relevant statutory regulators and after the satisfaction, government granted the commercial release into the market. And one year after commercial release, the feelers from the market about the seeds and from the farmers are satisfactory. We are glad to say the seed is doing well and farmers are in high demand. We have recorded tremendous success and farmers are now having additional income because of the high yield. And this year, there will be more seeds for farmers to buy,” Professor Ishyaku noted.

Meanwhile, farmers from across the state took turns to score the variety high in terms of less cost of production, high yield and economic livelihood.

A farmer from Rurum LGA, Abubakar Musa while giving testimony on the new variety, said the variety has the capacity to address to nation’s problem in hunger and food security.

“Since I began to farm this variety, after harvesting I have never taken the farm produce to the market as customers follow me down to my house to buy it,” Musa said.

Another farmer from Tudun Wada LGA, Dije Saidu described the variety as that tested and trusted as she said some persons even went as far as breaking into her farm to steal seeds of the new variety because of it high yield.

An extension worker, Ado Garba said farmers come from as far as Yobe, Kebbi, Sokoto States to buy the seeds because of it high yield and resistance to insect.

However, a representative of Gold Agric Nigeria Limited, seed company licenced to sell the variety, Iliya Ceto Voka said they received a stock of 2,500kg of the variety and sold all in less than 14 days unlike other varieties while it also kept on receiving calls from within and outside the country demanding for the variety even after it has exhausted it stock.