Coy distributes 2,962 bags of cotton seedlings to Taraba farmers

Speaking at the flag off ceremony at the company’s headquarters in Jalingo, Managing Director of the company, Barrister Sani Marke, said 47 cooperative groups with an average of 30 members each,totalling to 1,500 farmers registered to participate in the pilot scheme of the programme, with each cooperative group entitled to 63 bags of cotton seedlings.The […]

Speaking at the flag off ceremony at the company’s headquarters in Jalingo, Managing Director of the company, Barrister Sani Marke, said 47 cooperative groups with an average of 30 members each,totalling to 1,500 farmers registered to participate in the pilot scheme of the programme, with each cooperative group entitled to 63 bags of cotton seedlings.
The pilot project, according to the managing director, spread across six local government areas of Jalingo, Lau, Karim-Lamido, Bali, Gassol and Ardo-Kola.
Marke disclosed that Supernova has reached an agreement with Arewa Cotton, one of the leading cotton production and processing company in the country, to buy all that farmers would produce at a price far better than when middlemen are involved.
He added that his company has signed a memorandum of understanding with Main Street Bank which is ready to support the programme, saying all farm inputs and mechanisation would be provided to farmers at a price to be paid upon harvest of the commodity.
He also said that Supernova will soon commence distribution of rice seeds to farmers, adding that the company has extended its activities to the cultivation of rice with the partnership it is now establishing with Tara Investment.
In his remarks, state Director, Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Dr. Samuel Adaji, advised farmers in the state to form cooperatives and cluster groups to enable them benefit from government infrastructure and support.
He requested the cooperative groups to submit names of their members to his office for onward submission to the ministry’s headquarters in Abuja for possible assistance.
Taraba State Commissioner for Agriculture, Alhaji Isah Musa, commended the efforts of the company and urged farmers in the state to embrace the programme.
He advised cotton out-growers in the state to ensure quality production and endure the challenges that may come their way in the course of cotton cultivation.
Beneficiaries of the initiative commended the company and government for providing an enabling environment for the programme to thrive in the state, promising that they will make good use of the programme to better their lives.