Flour Millers Association Reiterates Commitment Towards Wheat Production

By Halliru Zaria

The Flour Milling Association of Nigeria has reiterated its commitment to towards expanding wheat production in the country.

The National programme manager of the association,Dr Aliyu Sama’ila disclosed this at the kaduna state wheat Farmers Green Field day held at Tudun kusa in Zaria local government area of kaduna state.

He said that the association will expand wheat production by providing all the necessary support for farmers to increase their yields to make wheat compete with rice and other dry season crops in the market.

Dr Aliyu said the association’s priority is to provide a market for wheat Farmers in Nigeria as well to expand their procurement as an industry across the wheat producing states through additional aggregation staff and warehouse capacity.

He said they are establishing procurement centers across the 15 northern states to offtake all wheat grains from 150,000 farmers under the anchor brower program of central bank of Nigeria.

According to him, the beneficiary states are Kano, kaduna,jigawa,kebbi, Sokoto,Bauchi, Adamawa, katsina,Gombe, Plateau,Taraba, Zamfara,Niger and Yobe state respectively.

The programme manager said their 2021/2022 development programme includes cultivation of 504 demonstration farms each on 0.5 hectare across the 15 northern states to provide training and agronomic practice to 250,000 farmers under the CBN anchor borrower program as well as the expansion of the association direct outgrower programmes with input loans to 2000 farmers in 7 states.

He added that the association will expand seed production with 6 certified seed companies for the dry and wet season seed production in order to produce sufficient seed for 5000 outgrowers next season.

Declaring the field day opened, the commissioner of agriculture, kaduna state,Malam Ibrahim Garba Husssini said the ministry has revolved the Agriculture with wheat farming in Zaria,Igabi and Kudan where farmers in these areas are doing very well.

He therefore called on the stakeholders to look at the decaying dams and channels to put them into a very functional and good condition for the wheat Farmers to enjoy the farming activities effectively.

The commissioner said wheat Farmers are suffering as a result of draying dams and channels problems which need urgent steps to address the situation.

Also in his remarks, the General manager, kaduna state Agricultural development Agency,Dr Abubakar Bayero said kaduna state has since embark on wheat farming and the result is very positive.

Bayero expressed appreciation to the Tudun kusa farmers for accepting the programme again despite the problem that occurred when they used Galma irrigation farm to cultivate wheat.

Speaking at the occasion, the Regional coordinator of the programme, Professor I.U.Abubakar said Flour Milling Association of Nigeria and CBN have been working tirelessly in ensuring the success of the programme.

He said that the Lake Chad research institute and seed companies as well the extension farmers have been doing very well in ensuring that wheat farming has succeeded and make Nigeria wheat import free.