As part of policy to explore all facets of agricultural value chains, the management of Lentus Foods, an agro-allied firm located at Ugho community in Orhionmwon local government area of Edo State plans to cultivate 500 hectares of cassava farm by 2015 fiscal year.
Donatus Imaghodor, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company gave the hint in Benin City during the inspection of the 10,000 hectares of cassava farmland already cultivated by the establishment and by officials of the Edo State office of the Nigeria Cassava Growers Association (NCGA).
Lentus Foods, which is into processing of cassava flour, starch, odourless fufu, Bendel garri and plantain flour, plans to introduce the “garri flake” which is a blend of garri, milk, sugar and milo, to the market by 2015 to ease students’ expenses on food.
He said the 500 hectares located at Edo state communal farms at Obayantor in Ikpoba- Okha local government area is to complement the existing hectares of the firm’s 300 cassava out-growers scheme in the state as well as to meet up with the company’s annual capacity production.
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According to him, in Obayantor where the farm is located on a 500 hectares land stretch has been mapped out which mean 490 hectares is what he will be looking for in the next year besides the 10 hectares that will be cultivated this year.
“The purpose is that at the moment my plant takes 500 hectares of cassava raw materials and that is just to process cassava flour alone on 100 percent capacity of what my factory has. What I need to have is about 500 hectares of cassava plant yearly and to do that I need to have my own coupled with the over 300 out grower farmers that also supply cassava tubers to the factory.
He also disclosed that the company is in collaboration with Partnership Initiative for Niger Delta (PIND)/USAID to provide technical know-how to farmers, noting that about four or five farmers have so far been trained on modern farming techniques.
geared towards improving their productivity and yield.
While disclosing that the Bank of Industry (BOI) has empowered the establishment with the necessary production machineries and working capital, he added that the intervention would increase the production capacity from 120 tons per month to 240 tons monthly.
Imaghodor who commended the Edo State government for the land, however decried the high cost of leasing a hectare which he puts at N7000. He therefore called on the state government to have a second thought by giving the land free to farmers not only to boost agriculture but to encourage more people to embrace the sector.
The Lentus foods boss added that the establishment needs over N60million to cultivate the entire 500 hectares.
IDRIS UMAR MOMOH
