Following the evocative losses incurred annually, Tomato Growers Association of Nigeria (TOGAN), has bemoaned the lack of implementation of the policy on tomato approved by the federal government.
The association disclosed that it has lost about N10 billion during this tomato season, with its members numbering over 47 million.
The Secretary-General, Sani Danladi Yadakwari, who revealed this at a press conference organized in collaboration with Nigeria Agribusiness Group in Lagos said that due to the lack of the much needed infrastructures which include packing houses, storage warehousing, functional dams and others, in rural farming communities, farmers are faced with a loss of over 40per cent of their expected production.
He added that data from the Ministry of Agriculture has shown that out of 1.5million metric tonnes (MT) of tomato produced every year, 700,000 MT were lost.
“Yearly, during the dry season, the tomato sector experience glut resulting from bumper harvest in all the tomato producing regions. The lack of guaranteed off-takers for this produce results in even more loses to the farmers. Our farmers have continued to remain in perpetual poverty and the poverty level will continue to rise if the necessary steps are not taken”.
Yadakwari lauded the efforts of the Nigeria Agribusiness Group (NABG), Pyxera Global, GAIN PLAN and many others for their continuous effort in ensuring farmers are linked with major off takers such as Dangote Farms, Savannah Farm, Ikara Processing Plants, as these Off-takers have several Memorandum of Understanding (MoU’s) with tomatoes farmers to feed their processing plants.
