Association wants national policy on wheat production

Wheat Farmers Association of Nigeria (WFAN), the umbrella body for wheat farmers in Nigeria, has said the Federal Government should produce a national policy on wheat to encourage increased production by members of the association.


Alhaji Salim Muhammad, National President of WFAN who made the call in Kano while speaking to newsmen recently noted that such a policy would provide deliberate plans and actions for decision makers in guiding farmers and guarantee improved wheat production in the country.

Lamenting the continuous neglect of wheat farming by past governments, Muhammad, who is also a member of the Presidential Task Force on Wheat, said it is unfortunate that the government has failed to provide any form of support to wheat farmers in this year’s farming season.

He recommended that the proposed policy should encompass wheat processing, packaging and marketing for effectiveness and efficiency.

In his contribution, Alhaji Farouk Rabiu, Chairman, All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) in Kano State, said the major challenge facing wheat farmers in the state is lack of improved varieties of wheat seeds for planting, adding that hitch-free supplies of improved varieties of wheat seeds would boost wheat production in the country.

Rabiu said wheat farmers in Kano State currently produce between two and three tonnes of wheat per hectare, a situation that will change with the availability of improved seeds.

Dr Nasiru Gawuna, Kano State Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources, said the state government is keenly aware of the lack of high-quality wheat seeds for cultivation in the state.


Gawuna disclosed that the state government had spent N50 million on the procurement of improved wheat seeds, adding that it had made the seeds available to wheat farmers in the state. Besides, the commissioner said the state government had revived its fertiliser blending plant so as to make fertiliser available and affordable to farmers in the state.

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