Since Nigeria recorded its first COVID-19 case in late February, lots of Nigerians are now consuming herbs as part of their daily diets in a bid to boost their immunity against the virus.
As a result, herbs production is fast gaining traction in the country as many farmers are now shifting to the cultivation of ginger, turmeric, and lemongrass among others to meet up with the current increasing demand for the crops.
Similarly, traders of herbs have seen an increase in sales owing to the recent surge in demand.
“I usually sell between three and four bags of ginger and turmeric daily before the COVID-19 outbreak but now I sell between eight and ten bags,” said Mohammed Ibrahim, a trader of herbs in the Mile-12 Market perishable section.
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“Lots of people are now including ginger and turmeric in their diets to boost their immunity because of the COVID-19 pandemic, thus, causing a surge in demand,” Ibrahim said.
Prices of dried ginger have surged by 64 percent since the virus outbreak from N17,000 pre-COVID-19 per 70kg bag to N28,000 per bag at the farm-gate. While a bag of fresh ginger now sells for N12,000 as against N8,000 sold pre-COVID-19.
For turmeric, a 70 kg bad now sells for N13,000 as against N8,000 before the virus outbreak at the farm-gate, indicating a 63percent rise in prices.
“Before now, I do not prepare most of my meals using ginger and turmeric but since the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus, I now ensure that it is part of my family daily diets to protect us from contracting the virus,” Chika Ezeadigo a mother of four in Ketu- Lagos said.
“I was told by my neighbour and church members that both ginger and turmeric are great immune boosters,” she added.
A 2019 study carried out by Shengying An and Guanzhong Liu among other lecturers at the College of Animal Science &Technology, Hebei Agricultural University, Baoding China finds that ginger extracts have antioxidant ability and a great immune booster.
BusinessDay findings show that the increase in the demand has also caused ginger and turmeric farmers to expand their production areas while making its cultivation attractive for other growers.
“Since the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a surge in demand for ginger and turmeric from farmers both locally and internationally,” said Mikah Adamu Sule, national president, Turmeric Farmers Association.
“Farmers who are growing the crop have expanded their production areas while others who cultivate other crops are shifting to growing ginger and turmeric because of the huge market currently,” Sule said.
He noted that people are consuming more of the herbs – turmeric, and ginger amid the COVID-19 pandemic owing to their immune-boosting properties which helps fight against viral replication.
Experts say that turmeric and ginger suppress various inflammatory molecules that are responsible for the causes of harmful viruses owing to its anti-inflammatory component called curcumin.
Most herbs can be consumed in different forms which include powder or fresh. They also used as spice in a wide array of dishes.
“Globally, people are now consuming more of ginger and other herbs due to the pandemic to boost their immune,” said Florence Edwards, national president, Ginger Growers, Processors &Marketers Association.
“As a result, Nigeria is seeing a surge in demand for its ginger currently since we have the spiciest variety globally,” Edwards said.
She noted that crops can be grown in all states of the federation but currently it is farmed in 32 states with Kaduna, Nasarawa, Benue, Niger, Gombe, and Kano state.
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation is the fourth largest grower of ginger with national output put at 31,000 metric tons per annum by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture. There are currently no production records for turmeric.
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