Foreword
Femi Abodunde General Administrator - Chief Executive
Abodunde Farms is an independent farming operation that cultivates cassava, yam, sorghum, maize as well as other cash crops and tropical fruits. We also process various agricultural goods into flour. Although Abodunde Farms itself is not smallholder by traditional definition, we exist in and are a support for an ecosystem of smallholders, as such we follow smallholder methods and principles in the way we operate. Our family history in farming is documented to as far back as 1901, when Nigeria became a British protectorate. Both my maternal and paternal grand parents, Ekpoza and Adebire Kolade, and Sawyer and Felicia Abodunde were farmers, local traders and landowners in what
are today the states of Edo and Ekiti, starting in the 1930’s going on through World War 2 and through Nigerian independence in 1960. We have trained and licensed agriculturalists, landowners, and smallholder farmers in every branch of the family tree going back over 100 years. Abodunde Farms is The largest landowner and cassava producer in a Network of smallholder family farms going back to the early 20th century. Today, most of Africa’s farming sector is smallholder farming. There are millions of smallholder farms in West Africa and these largely unindustrialized farms vary in size and are owned by individuals, families, communities, and in some cases by the federal government itself. In 1956 oil was discovered in Nigeria, and in subsequent years government priorities shifted from agriculture to oil and the economy became hopelessly dependent on oil, at the expense of the agricultural heritage. Today traditional crude revenues are beginning to wane, and farming is witnessing renewed interest and development from the federal
government, as well as from private landowners and farmers alike. To understand economic transformation in Africa today, one must be conversant of mid 20th century African history. After waves of independence movements across the continent saw Africans take over the governance of their own land and people, most of Africa’s leaders (enabled by foreign cronyism) adopted authoritative forms of government as well as socialist economics. The end result is the endemic corruption and continued exploitation of African people which all led to more poverty. As result of 21st century technologies and media, Africans are now back in control of their own stories. As such, the continent is
My grandmother Adebire Kolade and my mother in Akoko Edo, Edo State, Nigeria circa 1950
The Land The Guinean Forest Savanna Mosaic Abodunde Farms is Headquartered in Akoko Edo, Edo State, Nigeria. We are in the Guinean forest savanna. The Guinean forest-savanna mosaic is an ecoregion consisting of a band of interlaced tropical forest, savanna, and grassland running east to west across Western Africa. The mosaic is a vast area of grassland dotted with ancient rocks, as well as with tropical trees which grow alongside streams and on hillsides. Sporadic fires keep back the growth of trees in open country. A vast array of Africa’s best known fruits and agricultural crops are grown all across the mosaic. The Guinean forest-savanna mosaic covers an area of 673,60 sq. kilometers (260,100 sq. mi), extending from western Senegal to eastern Nigeria, and including portions of Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, and Benin.
Looking west toward Ondo State, Abodunde Farms
The mixture of forest and grassland provide habitat for a range of species including the African leopard, forest elephants, hippopotamus, crocodiles, antelopes, tortoise and other localized species including patas monkeys and Ghana worm lizards. The wetlands in the region are rich in birdlife, in particular the iris glossy starling and black crowned crane. The ecoregion covers large areas of many West African nations, including southern Casamance arm in Senegal, all of inland Guinea-Bissau, most of The Gambia south of the River Gambia, the band of lowland areas in Guinea that are parallel to the coast and then run south-east of the central mountains, in Northern Sierra Leone the towns of Makeni and Kabala are in the mosaic, in Côte d'Ivoire -a swathe across the middle east from Touba through the country's second-largest city Bouaké is included, a wide strip across Ghana including all of the country east of Lake Volta, and in Nigeria the mosaic spans several states (Oyo, Osun, Ondo, Edo, Enugu, Cross River, Nassarawa and Benue) as well as the cities of Ibadan (which means ‘where the forest meets the savanna’), the country's capital Abuja, and Lokoja where the River Niger and River Benue meet.
The Region The Akoko-Edo Region is the oldest local government area in Nigeria Akoko-Edo is a sub region in the Afenmai/Afemai region in Edo State, Nigeria. The history of this region can be traced back to the era of the British Colonial Administration in Nigeria starting in 1918 and which coincided with the end of the First World War. In 1963 Akoko-Edo was constituted as part of the then Afenmai/Afemai region. The Afenmai region remained a homogenous entity until 1976 when it was split into 3 sub regions namely; Akoko-Edo, Etsako and Ivbhietsako (later renamed as Owan). There are many different cultural identities and languages that co-exist in and call the region their home. Akoko-Edo has 14 Clans, 16 Sub Clans and 56 towns and villages. The latest population census figures put Akoko-Edo Local Government Area population at over 262,110. The total land mass of the L.G.A is about 1,371 square kilometers.
Forest Trail , Abodunde Farms
Major economic activity in Akoko-Edo is agriculture which provides employment for over 80% of the working population. The major agricultural products are Yam, Cassava, Plantain, Maize, Cocoyam, Cocoa, Cashew, Kolanut, Oil Palm and Coffee. Timber, Live-Stock and Cash Crops are also an important part of agriculture in Akoko-Edo. The Akoko Edo area is known as the “Cassava Capital of West Africa�. This is because of a highly fertile clay foundation soil which yields some of the best tasting cassava flours in the world. There are numerous landmarks across Akoko Edo including the ancient rocks and caves at Ososo hills and Somorika hills, Ojirami Dam, Igarra Rocks, Lampese Crocodile Lake etc. Also present in the area are large deposits of Limestone, Kaolin, Marble, Lime, Dolomite, Tourmaline Feldspar, precious stones, Iron-Ore and Gold.
SMALLHOLDERS AND FAMILY FARMERS Their economic viability and contributions to A diversified landscape and culture are threatened by monopolist and zero sum styles of globalization. As a result Many disappear, or become purely self-subsistence producers. a few Like Abodunde Farms recognize the need to grow into larger units that can compete with larger industrialized farms.
Smallholders are small-scale farmers, pastoralists, forest keepers, fishers who manage areas generally varying from less than one hectare to 10 hectares, using mostly non-industrial scale machinery. Smallholders are characterized by familyfocused motives such as favoring the stability of the farm household system, using mainly family and community labor for production. In developing countries, family farmers and smallholder farms have lower operating transaction costs, engage more workers per hectare, who being mostly family, are motivated to work. This gives them a productivity advantage over larger farms. In some regions, such as Latin America and
Eastern Europe, family farms coexist with large corporate farms. The core of Abodunde Farms sits on a total of ** hectares of land (confidential), and is growing. We are split into multiple plots, which we farm with smallholder methodology and principles, and on which a diverse range of tropical crops and fruits are cultivated. Cassava being our main focus.
African governments are re-discovering that smallholders and family farmers contribute significantly to their transforming economies, and play an important role in natural resource conservation. They are a critical population through which African leaders aim to increase public expenditures. This positions smallholders and family farmers to play the primary role in regional growth as Africa moves forward.
WHY SMALLHOLDER Farms MATTER Smallholders need access to, and control over natural resources, mainly land, water, forests and seeds. Investments in competent Women and young people are Also important because of the significant discrimination they may face in terms opportunity to compete along the agriculture value chain. 75 percent of the world’s food is generated from only 12 plants and 5 animal species, making the global food system highly vulnerable to shocks. Smallholder systems can reduce risks to our food system, as they nurture and raise many rustic and climateresilient breeds of crops and animals (food security). An analysis of 15 case studies in Africa demonstrated that organic agriculture brings multiple benefits to the community including more nutritious diet and health, reduced occupational hazards through decreased exposure to pesticides and job creation. In Brazil, each 8 hectares cultivated by smallholder farmers using mixed. cropping generates one permanent full-time job, while large-scale mechanized monocultures generate 1 job per 67 hectares. When associated to improved working standards and rights, sustainable smallholder agriculture can represent a key driver for decent rural jobs. Abodunde Farms seeks out knowledge from our network of smallholders & family farmers, as well as from various regional and international smallholder organizations so as to strengthen our own agro-ecological knowledge. We then use that knowledge within our network of family farmers and smallholders, so as to organize joint procurement of all kinds of inputs and services. If policymakers in sub-Saharan Africa want to support smallholder and family farms, they will need to develop plans to scale-up support to sustainable smallholder farmers, while developing their entrepreneurial capacities in a competitive free market environment that is transparent and accountable.
The Crop The cultivation of cassava Tubers is the cornerstone of Abodunde FarmS Activities. THE term cassava (manioc in French-speaking countries) is usually applied in Europe and the United States of America to the roots of the cassava plant (tubers), whereas tapioca denotes baked products of cassava flour. Manihot esculenta, (yucca plant root), commonly called cassava is native to South America and is extensively cultivated in subtropical regions across the world. Worldwide, 800 million people depend on cassava as their primary food staple. No continent depends as much on root and tuber crops in feeding its population as does Africa. Cassava was unknown to the Old World before the discovery of America. There is archaeological evidence of two major centers of origin for this crop, one in Mexico and Central America and the other in northeastern Brazil. Portuguese settlers found the native Indians in Brazil growing the cassava plant. and Pierre Martyr wrote in 1494 that the "poisonous roots" of a yucca were used in the preparation of bread. It is believed that cassava was introduced to the western coast of Africa in about the sixteenth century by slave merchants. Cassava is sometimes described as the "Bread of the Tropics”. The Brazilian farinha, and the related garri of West Africa, is an edible coarse flour obtained by grating cassava roots, pressing moisture off the obtained grated pulp, and finally drying it (and roasting in the case of farinha). Cassava is the third-largest source of food carbohydrates in the tropics, after rice and maize. The importance of cassava to Africans is epitomized in the Ewe (a language spoken in Ghana, Togo and Benin) name for the plant, Agbeli, meaning "There is Life”. Cassava plant on a plot, Abodunde Farms
Storage And Transportation Storage and Transportation of Agricultural Products for Smallholder and family Farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa Compared to most industrialized countries, farmers and traders in Africa often conduct a higher volume of transactions for smaller amounts and operate on a “cash and carry” basis. Africa is the world’s least urbanized and least industrialized continent with only onethird of the population living in urban areas. Africa also has one of the lowest road densities in the world, second only to Latin America. Unlike the majority of Latin Americans who live near the coast, one-third of all Africans reside in landlocked countries, which can magnify operating costs due to the lack of roads. Farmers and traders also contend with “Wild Wild West” style security issues when when traveling over large distances with goods.
Tipper load of cassava tubers
Typically, there are a variety of programs by NGOs, government, as well as the private sector which attempt to improve revenues and transport security for smallholder farmers by linking them with sources of “structured" demand. Abodunde Farms We sell crops by the tipper or truckload at farm. Flour milled at Abodunde farms is also picked up by customers at farm. many farmers in developing countries will store and sell crops out of makeshift open air structures as they are harvested. These structures are constructed from materials, such as timber, straw, reeds, bamboo, mud or bricks.
Open air temporary storage, Abodunde Farms
Value Added Processing Abodunde Farms sells cassava tubers primarily to small scale Flour Mills. We also own our own Flour Mill where we process maize and cassava into flour. The Cassava plant is mostly grown for its edible tubers, which serve as a staple food in many tropical countries. Here are the most common uses for cassava:
Cassava tuber processing, peeling
Alcoholic beverages made from cassava include cauim and tiquira (Brazil), kasiri (Guyana, Suriname), impala (Mozambique), masato (Peruvian Amazonia chicha), tarul ko jaarh (Darjeeling, Sikkim, India). In many countries, cassava is used to produce renewable energy, ethanol biofuel. The production of 2 million tonnes of ethanol fuel, 200 thousand tonnes biodiesel from non-grain feedstocks, is equivalent to the replacement of 10 million tonnes of petroleum.
Cassava (starch) flour processing, sifting
Cassava-based dishes are widely consumed wherever the plant is cultivated; some have regional, national, or ethnic importance. Cassava must be cooked properly to detoxify it before it is eaten. Cassava can be cooked in many ways. It can be made into a flour that is used in breads, cakes and cookies. Cassava tubers and hay are used worldwide as animal feed. Cassava hay contains high protein (20–27 percent crude protein) and condensed tannins. It is valued as a good roughage source for ruminants such as cattle. Cassava (starch) flour processing, pulp collection
Farmers Market Abodunde Farms Also owns a flour milling operation, where we process natural agricultural produce, such as cassava, into organic flour, which is then transported to major urban areas across Nigeria. An 8 hour trip from the northwestern tip of Edo State, where Abodunde Farms is located, to Lagos involves transportation security risk as outlined on the United States Department of State Travel.State.Gov advisory website. Lagos is known for having some of the largest, most colorful, and urban intense markets on the planet. “I’ve been to a lot of markets in a lot of chaotic cities, I’m quite obsessed by them. But the scale of Balogun Market in lagos, its #energy, the #movement, the amount of people I found on the streets of Lagos… It’s not like anything I have ever seen before. You are talking about one of the biggest markets in #Africa. Ridley Road Market in London can feel like a chaotic place, but Lagos markets are completely different. They are a continuous and unstoppable flux of people.” Lorenzo Vitturri
Near Balogun Market, Lagos
Delivery at Mile 12 Market, Lagos
Ibillo Market, Edo State
loading cassava flour bags ibillo Market, Edo State
Cassava flour market stall, Ibillo market, Edo State
Agricultural market stalls, Oyingbo Market, Lagos
Wholesale buyers at Ibillo Market, Edo State
Community centric operating model We Exist In a network of Smallholders and family farmers. Because of our rural roots and the nature of smallholder and family farming in West Africa, we operate first and foremost by customary laws as set forth by community leaders and elders in Akoko Edo, Edo State. Nigeria is one of the most pluralistic societies in the world in terms religion, ethnicity and laws. It is essentially a colonial configuration of Britain, a modern nation made up of hundreds of other ancient cultures each with their own sometimes shared, religious, ethnic and legal values. Nigerians observe several legal systems including common law, customary law and western style law. Customary law is derived from indigenous traditional norms and community practices, including the dispute resolution meetings of pre-colonial Yoruba Land and the Ekpe and Okonko of Igboland and ibibioland. In litigation between Nigerians and Non-Nigerians the general rule is that western style law applies. In matters between Nigerians, customary law typically applies first. And given that Nigeria has over 250+ different tribes, customary law is very fluid and is dependent upon the jurisdictions of each one of those 250+ tribes. Despite various challenges, customary law has remained resilient in Nigeria. It is safe to predict that plural legal systems will continue in Nigeria, in Africa, as well as in many other non western parts of the world for many decades to come.
Abodunde Farms at Mile 12 Market in Lagos
Abodunde Farms senior leaders Mrs. Yemi Abodunde - Elder Council, Chairwoman Mrs. Yemisi Jemitola - Elder Council, Secretary Mr. Femi Abodunde - Chief Executive Officer
Photo Gallery I
Abodunde farms, Akoko-Edo, Edo State, Nigeria
Photo Gallery ii
Abodunde farms, Akoko-Edo, Edo State, Nigeria
Photo Gallery iii
Abodunde farms, Akoko-Edo, Edo State, Nigeria
Sources 1. Federal Government of Nigeria 2. Edo State Government 3. United States Agency - International development (USAID) 4. Joseph O. Segun 5. Skinner O. Moses 6. International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)
Additional cassava specific information UPoCA
The project ‘Unleashing the Power of Cassava’ in Africa (UPoCA) draws on prior research results to increase on-farm cassava productivity and value-added processing for markets in DR Congo, Ghana, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Tanzania. Funded by USAID.