How to earn millions from beans farming

Beans are one of the foods which the body needs for optimal growth.  Rich in B vitamins and folic acid, beans contain minerals including iron, selenium, potassium, magnesium and calcium, and have high fibre content.

Beans belong to the family of crops referred to as legumes. There are many varieties of beans but the type used in preparing Nigerian beans recipes are the kidney shaped black eyed beans and the brown beans. The demand for beans is high in all parts of the country.

Requirements For Beans Farming

In order to guarantee high return on investment, land area of five hectares and above is recommended. In case of insufficient fund, one can acquire land with long lease.

Beans don’t grow well in areas with too much rain. The crop requires moderate but well distributed rainfall of about 300 to 400 mm per crop cycle. Dry weather is essential during harvest while prolonged dry conditions or extreme wetness is harmful to the crop.

Climbing types will yield well in areas of high rainfall while the dwarf types are more sensitive to high soil moisture levels. Suitable soil type range is from light to moderately heavy and to peaty with organic matter soil that is near neutral pH and good drainage.

Equipment: Tractors (mini or walking), wheel barrows, spraying machines and cutlasses, among others can be acquired or you leased. Mini and walking tractors can plough a hectare of land in less than five hours. Prices range from N780,000 to N1.8m.  

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Seeds: Varieties of beans that flourish well in Nigeria include White and Red Beans. It is important for the farmer to select the right variety manually in order to ensure that only healthy seeds are planted. Planting seeds are usually packaged in different sizes of 1kg, 5kg or 10kg. If right steps are taken, the bean seed would begin to sprout within six days of planting and grow into a good sprout within two weeks.

Fertilizer: In most cases, there will be no need for fertilizer except where levels of soil fertility are very low. If you are to fertilize, start after heavy bloom and set of pods. The most suitable fertilizer is the high Nitrogen type. But manure is highly recommended for beans farming such as animal droppings (poultry, goat, cattle).

Profitability

Return on investment is high especially now that mini and hand tractors are affordable for farmers to buy or lease. Improved seeds are also widely available and the use of manure from animal drops or from farm by products (compost) is highly recommended.

In the North where farm equipment and manpower are easily available, the cost of farming beans on five hectares of land is about N245,000 (Bean seeds N30,000, weed control N42,000, tractor leasing #N35,000, labour N70,000, fertilizer/manure N38,000, others N30,000).

Expected harvest is about 140 bags or 100kg. A bag sells for N18,000 which translates to N2,520,000 in sales. Cost of leasing land varies from one locality to another.

Regardless of location in the country, one can project that a huge return on investment will be realized with an expenditure of N500,000 on farming beans on five hectares of land.

Financing

Bank of Agriculture (BoA) and cooperative societies

First Bank Agricultural Development Trust Fund Credit (ADTFC) - a tripartite arrangement between a trust fund provider, the Bank and CBN (guarantor) to provide working capital loans for farm business.