The managing director of ECOBasic Seed Company, Brighton Karume has said that the only way for farmers to have an increased yield is the use of quality foundation seeds.
This is just as he also said, Nigerian farmers need to cultivate the habit of planting the right and quality seeds to attain self-sufficiency in food production in the country.
Mr. Karume said that the ECOBasic is doing everything possible to provide quality and sustainable foundation seeds to seed companies producing certified seed to increase the productivity and profitability of both Seed Companies and farmers in Nigeria.
Karume who stated this at a two-day training of the operators of seed companies in Kaduna, said the objective of the programme is to re-orient participants who cut across the region towards production efficiency and value-added selling which could lead to increased yields and profits.
He said “Basically, it’s about bringing the seed companies to speed in terms of what they want to do. Ecobasic Seed will not be in business without the seed companies excelling. If they are not in business, we are not in business,” he said.
“Prospects for the company is to be recognized as West Africa’s most reliable source of high-quality foundation seed in order to achieve its business goals. ECOBasic needs to adopt an in-house production model including own farm production of foundation seed to meet the quality assurance and productivity parameters” he said.
Earlier, the West Africa commercial manager of the Ecobasic Seed Company Limited, Mr. Moses Atewogboye said that the zero hunger and food security goals of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030 will be difficult to achieve in Nigeria unless and until the Nigerian farmers agree to grow improved seeds.
He disclosed that Nigerian farmers spend more on fertilizers to the tune of 5.2 metric tons per annum but spend far less when it comes to improved seeds that ought to go hand-in-hand with the volume of fertilizers for maximum output.
“So, for us to sustain agriculture and food security in Nigeria, we must cultivate the habit of purity of seed even in planting which is not going to happen overnight. People need to be conscious and deliberate about what type of seed they will grow”, he said.
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