Poor storage, bad roads threaten food security – Farmers

Nigeria's goal of achieving sustainable food security is reportedly jeopardized by a lack of adequate food storage facilities and an inadequate rural-urban road network.

The Chairman of the Oyo State All Farmers Association of Nigeria, Mr. Adewumi Abas, made this statement while conversing with the News Agency of Nigeria in Ibadan on Monday.

Abas urged the government to provide assistance to prevent farmers from the distress of witnessing their perishable goods, such as tomatoes and peppers, being wasted due to insufficient storage facilities.

He noted that certain perishable crops must be harvested nearly every three days, regardless of market demand.

"As soon as the quality of these crops begins to deteriorate, their market value will decrease, resulting in shortages for farmers.

"This, among other factors, contributes to the elevated cost of food in the nation.

"We hope that the government will invest in storage and food preservation facilities; farmers' associations will willingly participate in the project through the acquisition or rental of such facilities," he stated.

The chairman also expressed concern that the country's inadequate rural-urban road network has been a significant reason for transporters to take advantage of farmers during the harvest season.

Furthermore, he mentioned that farmers face challenges due to a lack of vehicles to transport their crops to markets in a timely manner.

He explained that transporters often avoid poor rural roads, citing concerns that these roads could damage their vehicles.

"Frequently, farmers are left with the burden of carrying harvested crops on their heads to nearby areas where vehicles can access and transport them to the markets.

“This always leads to double expenses because labourers who would carry the goods with head pans will collect money as well as the drivers.

“This has been one of the factors reducing farmers’ profit margin, adding to the cost of foodstuffs in the market because farmers would definitely spread all the expenses on the market price,” he said.

Nonetheless, he praised the Oyo State Government for enhancing security, particularly for farmers in the rural regions of the state.

Abas remarked that the Western Nigerian Security Network, known as ‘Amotekun’, along with the NSCDC Agro-Ranger Squad, has contributed to a sense of relative peace in the rural areas of the state.

However, he urged the government to remain vigilant regarding the security of farmers, especially during the dry season when herdsmen typically roam in search of green grass for their livestock.

The chairman also expressed concern that numerous farmers were unable to recover their investments due to a significant decline in produce prices.

He attributed this situation to government policies that allowed for the mass importation of foodstuffs with minimal regard for local farmers.

He pointed out that many cassava farmers have suffered losses in their investments during the current harvest season.