Taraba cocoa, coffee farmers face many hurdles

MayoSelbe and other communities in Gashaka Local Government Area of Taraba State are sleeping on gold mine but lack of knowledge of the potential of their environment has prevented them from harnessing it. The land, which is vast and fertile, has the potential of growing cocoa, coffee, oil palm and other cash and food crops […]

MayoSelbe and other communities in Gashaka Local Government Area of Taraba State are sleeping on gold mine but lack of knowledge of the potential of their environment has prevented them from harnessing it.

The land, which is vast and fertile, has the potential of growing cocoa, coffee, oil palm and other cash and food crops in commercial quantity but only a few in the community take the advantage of growing these cash crops, especially cocoa and coffee.

Mr Aaron Johnson, one of the cocoa farmers in MayoSelbe, told Daily Trust that cocoa and coffee seed were first distributed to some interested farmers in 1967.

Before then, researchers from Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria had discovered that the Gashaka area had the potential of growing cocoa and coffee in commercial quantity.

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“The experimental farm located along MayoSelbe-Ago,” Johnson said, is a clear indication of such potential as the farm is yielding top quality cocoa and coffee yearly since its establishment 53 years ago.

He said his father was among the few selected farmers that were provided with cocoa seeds, which they planted in their farms and it yielded cocoa, but what discouraged the first farmers was that there were no buyers of cocoa beans.

He said what really discouraged residents of Gashaka area who are 90% farmers from taking advantage of cocoa farming was the absence of buyers.

“At that time nobody was talking of cocoa production in the North but the entire cocoa production was restricted to the southern part of the country,” he said.

Johnson further stated that his father cut down all the cocoa stands in his farm and planted other crops and that’s what most of the selected farmers did.

Daily Trust’s visit to the area revealed that there are many cocoa farmers across the Gashaka Local Government Area.

However, lack of ready market for the produce is a factor responsible for low participation of the residents in cocoa and coffee farming.

It was discovered that few months ago a bag of cocoa was sold at the rate of N900,000 in Kurmi and Takum but Gashaka cocoa farmers have stock of cocoa beans and nobody came to buy at that rate until when the price came down to N300,000.

Williams Shuidon, a cocoa farmer in MayoSelbe, told Daily Trust that Cocoa farmers in Gashaka area are always left behind in the scheme of things regarding the market affairs of cocoa beans.

He said it was discouraging for a situation where middle men are not coming directly to Gashaka to buy cocoa beans from the farmers in the Gashaka area.

“This year a bag of cocoa beans was sold at the rate of N900,000 in Kurmi and Takum but we here in Gashaka are not aware of that price boom until when the price came down to N300,000

“And at that time it was cocoa farmers from Kurmi local government area that came to buy the produce from us and when they came, they told us that the price was N300,000 and we have an option than to sell at that price” he said.

Shuidon stated further that with vast and fertile land, Gashaka could be a major source of cocoa beans in the country and residents stand to benefits economically but the state government has to focus its attention to the area. 

Daily Trust findings revealed that middle men from the southern part of the country who dominate the cocoa beans business in Taraba State only focus their activities in Kurmi and Takum local government areas.

It was learnt that farmers from the two local government areas who had contacts with middle men from the southern part of the country take the advantage and exploit Gashaka farmers.

Williams Shuidon was, however, of the view that Gashaka cocoa farmers have to break the monopoly and attract buyers directly to the area in order to get a good price for their produce.

Another cocoa farmer in the area, Mallam Salihu, also told Daily Trust that the absence of buyers of cocoa beans in the area is discouraging more residents from engaging in cocoa farming.

“Cocoa and coffee crops started on experimental level in MayoSelbe in 1967, but cocoa and coffee farming is at the lowest level compared to Kurmi and Takum local government areas,” he said.

He said Taraba State government has to do something to help Gashaka farmers get the necessary publicity in order to attract the attention of buyers and encourage more farmers to participate in cocoa farming.

Further findings revealed that despite the potential of growing coffee in commercial quantity, farmers are yet to take such advantage as is done on  the Mambilla Plateau that shares a boundary with Gashaka area.

Few kilometres up at the Plateau in Sardauna Local Government Area, there are many tea and coffee farms but not in Gashaka area despite the potential to do so.

At the MayoSelbe experimental station, cocoa and coffee are grown but the residents are not taking the opportunity to grow the two cash crops.

Mr Audu John told Daily Trust that farmers have to be encouraged to grow tea and coffee in Gashaka area because the potential is there and vast and fertile land is also available .

Findings revealed that the Gashaka area shares similar climate with Mambilla Plateau even though the area has no temperate climate as the case with Mambilla Plateau, but most of the crops grown in the Mambilla Plateau could be grown in Gashaka Local Government Area but the question remains on why farmers in Gashaka area are not utilising the potential to grow tea, coffee and cocoa in commercial quantity as their neighbours in Sardauna and Kurmi local government areas are doing.

Mr Williams Shuidon,who is the junior to the paramount ruler of MayoSelbe, told Daily Trust  that farmers in the area would have to confront the challenges by coming together to form a union to encourage residents to grow tea coffee, palm kernel and cocoa in commercial quantity.

He, however, added that the residents are making fortune through garri processing and cassava farming.