15
!'fl led.n Tribune
Tuesday. 5 June. 20 i!
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bill or aD oct to provide for the mandatory Inclusion" of cassno In the production of all Dour in Nigeria and for other mattenl cORnected tfle with was recently sent by President Goodluck Jonathan to the NaUonnl Assembly for approval. The bill has since become a source of ontro~ersy among the lawmaken, with some of them thrdtenlng not to pass It. The Federnl Government's decision to place an embargo on the mpbrthuon of wheal has also generated a controversy among some Nigerians, especially producers and Importenl of wbeat. The question on tbe ps of ,bany Nigerians now Is: Do we actually need cassava [lour Inclusion In the production of [lour·bll!led foods? Se}"c Ade nl)"1 bad discussions 1.~ '. with two seasoned experts In the field . Below are their views: l h e counlry's global position In cassava producUon. the crop can be used for Industrial revolution. economic emancipation and development. In fact. cassava can be all engine of c hange for lhr- development of Nigeria. You mean CQS5ava l.s a "1ajor or g olden crop to D.chle"e food .ec u ·
rI',)? Not only thaL lhe cas· sava l'e.volullo n I'm fo re · seetng In Nlgerta. would encourage the entry of maJly In the prlvate sec· tOl'lotnlO the processing an~ markel\ng of lhc crap. Whal we n eed In NI· gcl"(la Is a strong awareness and scnslU8aUon abeut the usefulness. or call Il better advantages of cassava bY' products like flour for in dustrial
on. po,~"y" ngl"'"
"oaBOlD can the govern-
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ment h e lp In the
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(SLAJU). long time pres would be popula.r Q
In
-=-'~- ' ,g",... I.s mentioned. wha' major crop UlO'Uld come to y o ur m1nd (15 a renoum.ed re:sea.rcheT
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.saIKI n!uolu.tLon you
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Many crops would come 10 my mtnd. bul the one I will menUo!' If rm asked 10 talk or speak oul Is cas-
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In 1989. "Igcrta became thewor1d largest producer of cassava througJ1 the support of IITA and o ther tnternatlonal aud naUonal rool crops programmes In Mrtca. It $D) dd also be understood that Ntger1a has the Largest . gro-ccoIogy for cassava dcve.lopment. not only In Mnca. but globally What ar~ t h e obstacles to cassaua development inlfigma1 H(JI'lC!tty. markelklg b a major probJem 0( C8S!a\"3. buslneM In 'f~ "The private sectoc aTe saytng they ~ not @ct.UJtg enough cassava flour to use. So. there has to be valu .. chatn connecUon between cassava prod1.lttnJ and It!Jo'!rs In Ntgc:r1a for economic devekJpmenL Are you t'G ylng there ls money I.n cassauaJlour if one CdR ce.qlloft the opportunHy? Look. I rOI 'Clee a acriou.s cassava revoIuUon In Nigeria wllk:h may be wttnesscd In the next I'ow"lo flveyears. I'm predJctlro1ihat very 9OOr1. cassava flour would 0Yershadow othe'" IvpaI ollJours. MIJJ'k my WOlds. I may not be In N~rta 1):1 Ul8l Urne. but I wtll be In Mrica. G(Kfs willing. fm tven prohesytng Ulis today (In 2008). You cue' .:JCnding like a prophet who is uery &ure rifhls tDONh .• Why? A Ume wUl come In Nigeria when cassava flour would Mnd o ·Jter (yes of flotors to relegation. Cassava flour ts ~ood . nulr1UOus. h ea1thy and a money spinner. ~ far better Ulan w heat flour. Ir the Ni· geria government 15 aer10us a n d ready to maintain
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talking about? Covernment can play a factlltatlng role to en hance cassava p roduction. processing and marketi n g . C o vern ment s h ould come out wit h progmmmes !.hal will In· vlte o r entice the private sector partic ipation In cassava bUSiness. The Nlgertan govenlment can even go to the exlent of presenting a cassava revotuUOrl bill to its lawmakC13 for approval nlls wouki l)dp ynurcounlty to genemte IJ'K)I"!: Income. It is good to say thai over 24 h igh ykIdlng cas88va varieties have been rele~ In 'ITA since I got to Nigeria and we haw: to tncrease the productiVIty of cassava. while lOWering cost ...... of produ UKWlon _ cUon. qf ~ Con boaIt the """"""'" qf IfIgerfdl Then: Is a.Iso elh a no l. wh ich Is; a bIo-fud. Ethanol from cassava 15 also an In come ge n erating product w h lcb Nigeria can harne55 T h ere 15 also it starch w h ich 15 used tn the oIl-drtJllng Ind ustry. So. you will see tha i cassava has varfous; uses and can be d cscrtbed as a muJU· purpoee tuber cup,
'Those opposing cassava flour are enemies of economic development' En,lneer TODy £,ba u the Ad"lser to the Mlnlate:r of Agriculture and Rural De"dopment. Dr AklPwumJ Adesina, on Cas. ."a - Traditional Food Valae Cbllia (ftifuJlqfun. garri etc) and the NaUonal Secre.ta.ry. Agricultural Machinerie. and Equipment F&bricato.ra Anoclation of Nigeria (AllEFAN). Be ban. bb mind on wby the mt!DIbera of the Nadonal A..em.bly muat aupport tbe c ....". Dour pollcr bW preaentated by President jGoodluck Jonathan, EJ:cerpt.: Tis yourreocfiontothes-tatem.entcred ited to the lrinlster of Agric ulture, Dr. AkfnJcurunI Adeslna. that 1"edern1 GoueTnment would an errtbaryo on the of white wheal In coUTDgf!! the deDelopmenf nation'. economy through
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production Of CO!i5avafor trf4l' reuolution? Vay good decistOIl and I believe that many Nlgerlans. espec ially those: who want our !laUDn to be onc o f the 20 leading economies In the world In the nearest future. would support th e decl5ion. If we must economy. then there Is the: need Inwards and tnke some ctslolls without ~'~"~'L need to put a to some adopled or acquired polk:k:s the love for fOreign products l h e detriment of our own economy must Slop. It 15 not only wheat we need to slOp Its porta lion: there are sltll products we n eed to consider so thai the naUon'S agricultural s«tor can develop like thai o f other coun tries of the world . But some people'. argunu:nt was cassava Jlour inclusion in the pnKluc:tlon of some foods. would further contribute to the high prevalence of diabetes and othu nutritional problems in th~ country? (Laughs... 1 So. you mean cassava 15 not good for heal th? An: those people tdllng us that cassava flour would ma r our health? Even Sim ple logic would leU you that wh eat and cassava are lhe same. Whea t 15 a catbonhydrate-based food likewise cassava. Cassava flou r would produce any food wheat can produce. even wi th better taste. We s hould no l be deceived. those who are against C8S88va flour are merely doLn g 50 for reuons best known to you and me. If It's not for poUtk:aI reason. It wou ld be: for commerctal Inten:sL You know there Is always a resistance to a poslUve change or policy In Nigeria. But I know th at with proper d1sc:us8ion and lntdJectuai debates. our lawmakers wtll see ~as<ms and aPJll'lM= the btU presented by President Coadluck Jon aUlan and cassava !Jour and very soon It would replace wheal flour In ille food proeCSSfngg lndust.r1es aCl'OM lhe country. Is U tn.Ie that CGSSaDCI oan. actually cause cfiabe.
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I'm not a nutrition ist or dtetldan. I'm a tech nologlst and a rood proce:ssor, but the quesUon I woukI li ke to ask lho!!e who are against cassava flour 15 what food did they eat when they wen: young? Can lho5e people tell me whether they h ave not eaten gam.fo./u. lafim. etc before. even durin g Uldr ch1Idhood? How many c( lhem have devdopc:d either dlabetts OI"othC'r~ which illefdalmed cassaVa can cause? Honestly. some people ace fun ny. cassava 15 a popular food and 1 know tha t some foods are produced from It like rogo I edible cossaval and cassava porridge. whtch HalJ.S8!l kM: very well In Igboland. cassava Is; a common food ~ 10 pr0d uce f~ like garrI.. sfa1t'h. akpu if\ifuJ, Afrk:an salad
known as abasho . In Yoruba land. cassava is known as ege or gbogudo. and It Is an household name synonymous with foods like eba: starch. elC. while some people even use: It to pound yam. So ",,-haI~wetaIktngaboul?
casava flour has come and there Is nothdo aboul
sliva "our c annot harm anybody 315 long as wheal flour or other fJour8 does not hann UlI!: consumers. You Just c:ame back from China. wluzt Is your experience I.n that coun' try and I.n what tDtIY'" do you think Nigeria can emulate China? My b rother. China Is a well developed country. especially In lhe area of agneulture. The counuy is one of the leading producers of wheat and I1ce globally and you need to sec whal the country 15 doing In illC i\JUI of agriculton:. TIley have whal could be descrtbed as II home--grown agrlcultuml system with the adopUOn and support of home· grown. appropriate Itthnologles wttlc h Is really contnbuUng to their rast developmenL NlgeriS needs to close Its eyes to UK tmportaUon of some western products tr we a c tually want to break the chain ofpovaty and hunger. We need to adopt OlIrown approprtate technology ror us to be rood suffidenL