As part of activities to mark the world food day in Edo State, farmers across the 18 Local Government Areas of the State on Monday converged in Benin City to display their food items.
The exhibition, which took place at the Edo state ministry of agriculture, had in attendance farmers of diverse variety of crops and animal-based foods namely tubers of yams, bunches of plantains, cocoa, rice, garri, oil palm, pineapple, oranges, eggs, fishes, honey and many others.
Speaking at this year’s celebration themed ‘Our actions are our future. Better production, better nutrition, a better environment and a better life’, Peter Aikhuomobhogbe, permanent secretary, Edo State ministry of agriculture and natural resources said the amount, price and the quality of food produced in a food system affect the types and nutritional quality of diets people take in.
Aikhuomobhogbe stressed that food production and food consumption are crucial to ensuring proper nutrition.
“If food systems worked well in providing consumers with diverse, nutritious and affordable diets, people could procure their food in the market regardless of their own agricultural productivity. But among poor households in Edo State and Nigeria at large, this is not the case; the rate of food insecurity and malnutrition in these areas are severe,” Aikhuomobhogbe said.
The permanent secretary, who said that every human being has a fundamental right to be free from hunger, assured that the state government has zero tolerance for hunger and it is committed to improving the livelihood of its people through the fight against hunger, poverty and malnutrition.
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Reeling out the achievements of the state government in facilitating food production, he said the task of achieving food security is on course following the commencement of many programs and interventions such as the Edo State oil palm programme (ESOPP), independent farmers’ initiative, Edo State agripreneur programme among others.
In his remarks, Momodu Oshiobughie, Edo north coordinator of All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), expressed gratitude to the state government for the various agricultural interventions.
Imasuen Kingsley, Edo State chairman, Poultry Association of Nigeria, on his part, commended the government for his programmes, assuring that they would do everything possible to meet the poultry needs of the state.
Also speaking, Tracy Agol, chairperson, National Coconut Producers, Processors and Marketers Association of Nigeria (NACOPPMAN), who lamented the rise in food prices, called on governments to put measures in place to address the frightening state of insecurity on farm routes so as to enable farmers access their farms without fear of being killed or kidnapped.
Earlier, Ufuoma Enu, managing director of Bethan industries limited, a firm that deals on processing cassava into several products including fufu flour, urged the government to support them financially as it would help in surmounting the challenge of high food prices and hunger.
