Demand for seed mounts as over 9,000 farmers plant PBR cowpea

8 companies to produce certified seed – IAR About 11 metric tons of Pod Borer Resistant (PBR) certified seeds (Sampea 20-T) have been produced and sold to farmers through the licenced seed companies in Nigeria for the 2022 planting season, which commenced earlier in some agro-ecological zones of the country. Dr Ijeoma Akaogu, the African […]

• 8 companies to produce certified seed – IAR

About 11 metric tons of Pod Borer Resistant (PBR) certified seeds (Sampea 20-T) have been produced and sold to farmers through the licenced seed companies in Nigeria for the 2022 planting season, which commenced earlier in some agro-ecological zones of the country.

Dr Ijeoma Akaogu, the African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF) programme officer for Pod Borer Resistant (PBR) Cowpea, said over 9,321 farmers have planted the crop across the country this season.

However, Daily Trust gathered that more farmers are likely to grow the variety that is resistant to maruca pest which caused up to 80 per cent yield loss, in two circles this year.

According to the officer, the country started with three licenced companies (Goldagric, Tecni, and Maina), but due to “the high demand for the seeds by farmers, five additional seed companies were licenced to satisfy the needs of farmers in Nigeria.”

Dr Mohammed Lawan Umar, the trial manager on the Sampea-20 T project at the Institute of Agricultural Research (IAR) Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, in a telephone interview, said the Maruca resistant cowpea came as a game changer because it altered the way cowpea is produced in Nigeria.

He said despite the effort of the research institute in liaising with the seed companies to ensure that quality seed was produced and made available to farmers, the demand was still high.

The researcher said up north, around the Daura area in Katsina State, where farmers planted earlier than in other agro-ecological zones, harvest is already underway.

Currently, there are no seeds in the market and farmers are still looking for the seed because the demand is high. What I’m hearing from farmers in the communities that we work with is that they are liaising with farmers in the agro-ecology that planted earlier, like Daura in Katsina State, which I’m sure they have started picking.

“Some are rushing to get some seed from the farmers there to also plant in some parts of the country like the northern Guinea Savannah such as Zaria, Kaduna State, Niger and the rest.

“The essence of our engaging seed companies is also to help in disseminating or making seed more accessible to farmers across the country. Last year, we had only three licenced companies. The licence is only to ensure that we give some conditions for production that will ensure quality seed and that what we are giving out is what they are producing. That is the essence of licencing because it’s royalty-free,” Dr. Umar stated.

The scientist said what the institute was doing with respect to the soaring demand for seeds was to try to engage more seed companies to scale up production to meet the yearning of farmers this season.

“As of this year, 2022 cropping season, we are increasing the number of seed companies from three to almost 10 companies because there are many expressions of interest from several companies that submitted their letters of intent to grow the cowpea and market it in the country.

“So these companies are brought onboard to help in producing more of the seed in order to meet the demands of the various stakeholders,” he said.