Nigerian minister of state for agriculture and rural development, Mustapha Baba Shehuri, said Nigeria will be among the world’s top-three potato producing countries by 2025. He said this at the first International Potato Value-Chain and Root Crops Conference held in Jos, Plateau State capital.
The ministry had identified yield challenges in the industry, such as poor seed, diseases, inadequate storage facilities and mechanisation. The challenges, he said, should be addressed at both federal and state level. Shehuri explained that some of the
measures taken include the establishment of a tissue culture centre at the National Root Crop Research Institute’s sub-station
in Jos to solve seed problems. Others include a 20-ha irrigated land to support seed multiplication, and a 10-ton cold storage facility currently being built.
For more information on industry news from The Cable, as published in CHIPS [January | February 2022] magazine, click here.