There is a growing business opportunity for suppliers in Nigeria’s seed industry valued at N777.4 billion as the country has failed over the years to invest in seed production despite rising population and quest for food security.
Nigeria’s seed demand is above 350,000 metric tonnes yearly, according to the National Agricultural Seed Council (NASC) estimates, with current production less than a quarter of the national demand.
To this end, millions of smallholder farmers in Nigeria do not have access to quality seeds of most grains, legumes and tree crops, a situation that has made the country’s average farm yield far below the global standard.
“Inadequate access to quality seeds is the major problem facing Nigeria’s agriculture today. Most of the seeds in the market are imported because we do not produce enough of the seeds farmers need for farming,” AfricanFarmer Mogaji, chief executive officer, X-Ray Consulting Limited, said.
“Our population is growing fast and farming population is increasing daily but the seeds farmers need to feed Nigerians are insufficient because the level of investment in the seed industry is still low despite the huge demand. We need to bridge our seed gap to achieve self-sufficiency in food production,” Mogaji said.
The Federal Ministry of Agriculture in 2015 estimated Nigeria’s seed industry to potentially stand at N777.4 billion and local production at N252.3 billion, leaving a N525 billion seed gap.
Experts suggest that the figure may have risen by 15 percent or more given the number of new farmers as well as rising population growth rate.
Nigeria’s population is estimated at 190 million with a population growth rate of 3.2 percent per annum. These 190 million inhabitants must be fed with staple foods ranging from yams to rice, cassava, beans, bananas and tomatoes, but the seeds to do this are not readily available, according to experts.
Nigeria’s total national seeds requirement for eight major crops including maize, rice and cowpea in 2015 stood at 388,690.64 metric tonnes (MT), while the quantity available was 126,173 MT, leaving a yawning gap of 262,517MT, according to BusinessDay’s calculations using data from the Ministry of Agriculture.
Femi Oke, chairman, All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Lagos chapter, said to reverse the trend, the private sector should drive investments in the country’s seed industry to prevent the demand-supply gap from further widening and creating a fertile ground for the proliferation of unregistered operators to flood the markets with fake and adulterated seeds.
“We have shortage of seeds in virtually all crops today and this is why most of our markets are flooded with fake and adulterated seeds,” he said, adding that the huge demand for seeds in the country is an opportunity for seed firms to invest in hybrid seeds.
Since 2012, the number of private seed companies in the country has increased and experts say it is a testimony to the enormous potential and vast business opportunities yet unexplored.
Some of the seed companies in Nigeria today are Premier Seeds Nigeria Limited, Maslaha Seeds Nigeria Limited, West African Cotton Company Limited (WACOT), Notore Seeds Limited, Candel Seeds Limited and Alheri Seeds Limited.
However, most of the seeds found in the Nigerian markets are adulterated, as the federal and state governments show no interest in investing in the seed industry.
Despite Nigeria’s heavy involvement in agriculture compared to other African nations, the country lags behind its peers in the sector in terms of agricultural research funding. As a result, farm yields have remained low. Experts blame this on scarcity of quality seeds and seedlings in the country, which they say has forced farmers to buy cheap and adulterated varieties that produce lower crop yields.
“The issue of seed is getting better today compared to what it was two years back, but we still have serious issues with some crops as you hardly get hybrid seeds to plant, making farmers to resort to planting grains instead,” Muhammed Augie, chairman, Kebbi State Rice Farmers Association, said.
“This has made us record lower yields per hectare. There is still much investment needed for seeds in the country so that we can compete with our peers in terms of yields,” Augie said.
Some seed companies contacted by BusinessDay refused to comment on the issue.
Josephine Okojie
