Food Production In Nigeria Research Articles

HPLC analysis of nicotinamide, pyridoxine, riboflavin and thiamin in some selected food products in Nigeria

Food fortification is an important tool for improving the health of the population. Motivated by this, the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has in the past few years embarked on a campaign to create this awareness. There has been varying degree of compliance to this, and so it is of utmost importance to know the food products that contribute significantly to the dietary vitamin B intake. This study investigates the amount of four Vitamin B compounds, namely nicotinamide, pyridoxine, riboflavin and thiamin, present in different packaged food items available in Lagos metropolis of Nigeria. The food items analyzed include dairy products, fruit juices and cereal products. These foods were chosen because of their widespread consumption in the area. The analysis was done using a high performance liquid chromatographic technique with a UV detector. The separation was carried out on a C18 column, using a mobile phase made up of 70% buffer (a solution of sodium salt of hexane sulphonic acid) and 30% HPLC grade methanol. The identification was based on retention time match against a standard while the quantitation was based on the peak area match against those of a standard. The calibration curves for the standards were linear with a linear regression coefficient close to unity. Key words: Vitamin B, HPLC, food fortification.

The determinants of technical efficiency in mixed-crop food production in Nigeria: A stochastic parametric approach

This study employs a stochastic frontier model to examine the determinants of technical efficiency of mixed -crop farming in Nigeria using farm-level survey data collected from 240 food crops. The empirical result shows that more than half of the farmers were 87% efficient in allocating their resources. This result was further corroborated by the return to scale (RTS) of 1.115 obtained which shows that farmers practising this form of farming system operate in stage I of production surface (increasing returns to scale).Also determinants of farmers production efficiency show that farmers' socio-economic variables represented by age and experience contributed positively to technical efficiency of the farmers. While the level of schooling and household size however reduces technical efficiency of the farmers. The policy implication of these findings suggests that there is considerable scope for improvements in efficiency levels leading either to increased output or cost savings with emphasising on adequate enlightenment on the benefit of engaging in this system of farming with a view of solving the problems of food insecurity in the country. Keywords : Mixed crop farming, , Nigeria, stochastic frontier, technical efficiency Eastern Africa Journal of Rural Development Vol. 21 (1) 2005: pp. 15-22

Chemical analysis and sensory evaluation of Ogi enriched with soybeans and crayfish

PurposeThe objective of this work is to prepare two complementary diets based on the enrichment of the traditional Ogi with soybeans and crayfish and comparatively evaluate the compositional and sensory attributes of the two diets.Design/methodology/approachThe diets were formulated by mixing Ogi with soybean flour in the ratio of 7:3 to produce diet A, and with the crayfish flour in the same ratio, giving rise to diet B. These diets were evaluated for their nutritive value using proximate analysis. Sensory evaluation was also carried out to assess the acceptability of the diets.FindingsChemical analysis showed that diet A (Ogi‐soybeans) contained 14.16 per cent protein, 18.6 per cent fat, 2.0 per cent crude fibre and 2.14 per cent ash, while diet B (Ogi‐crayfish) contained 17.66 per cent protein, 12.6 per cent fat, 2.45 per cent crude fibre and 5.35 per cent ash. Sensory evaluation showed that diet A was generally more acceptable in terms of colour, tastes, consistency and aroma. However, this difference was not statistically significant (p<0.05).Originality/valueThe methods employed in this study are very simple and ingredients used are available and acceptable to local tastes. Both prepared diets, in their present form, are compared favourably with industrially prepared Nutrend. It is therefore possible for small‐scale and cottage industries to engage in suitable complementary food production in Nigeria, utilizing local resources.

THE EFFECT OF PHOSPHATE APPLICATION TO COVER CROPS ON THE YIELDS OF SUCCEEDING MAIZE (<i>Zea mays</i> L.) ON A KANHAPLIC HAPLUSTALF IN NORTHERN GUINEA SAVANNA OF NIGERIA

Phosphorus deficiency is a major constraint that limits food production in Nigeria, especially under acidic soil conditions. Presently, successful production of high nutrient requiring plants such as maize is only possible with the use of inorganic phosphate fertilizers that are very costly and often unavailable to the farmer. In an attempt to address this problem, field trials were conducted on a Kanhaplic Haplustalf at Samaru (11 o 11'N, 7o 38'E) to evaluate the response of ten (10) leguminous cover crops and maize to native and applied phosphate, and to evaluate the effects of these treatments on the performance and P nutrition of succeeding maize in a rotation. Among the cover crops evaluated, Crotalaria ochroleuca was the most P efficient in terms of total amount of above ground biomass per unit P taken up, while Phaseolus vulgaris was the least efficient. The yield of maize preceded by Lablab purpureus, Chamaecrista rotundifolia, and Mucuna pruriens was increased by over 50% in the first year after cover cropping. The positive effects of these cover crops on yield of succeeding maize did not however manifest in the second year. Effect of Sokoto Phosphate Rock (SPR) on maize yields and available soil P started manifesting only in the third year of cropping when the soil P was sufficiently depleted to force the dissolution of phosphate rock. Nigerian Journal of Soil Science Vol.4 2003: 25-34

Sustainable Soil Management Practices in Small Farms of Southern Nigeria: A Poultry-Food Crop Integrated Farming Approach

ABSTRACT A major reason given for the decline in per capita food production in Nigeria over the last two to three decades is the gradual decline in land productivity. Available information shows that in southern Nigeria, for example, there was recorded a consistent decline in yield per hectare of major food crops between 1995 and 2000. Evidence from the literature suggests that the main reason for this persistent decline in soil productivity is the perpetuation of unsustainable soil management practices by small food crop farmers that dominate the food production landscape in the country. This study therefore sets out to find out whether the adoption of a poultry based integrated food crop production system is economically viable in southern Nigeria. This is predicated by the fact that the environment in the southern part of Nigeria is well adapted for poultry production. Primary data was collected in Edo state, southern Nigeria, through a sample survey using a well structured questionnaire. A total of 94 poultry-based integrating farmers was selected using a combination of stratified and systematic random sampling procedure. A Linear Programming (LP) model was used to analyze and determine the optimal enterprise combination that maximizes the dual objectives subject to the production constraints of the small farms. The result shows that the dual objectives of maximizing Total Gross Margin (TGM) and simultaneously ensuring sustainable soil management practices was possible under full integration of poultry-food crop production. The results of the study suggest that a poultry-based integrated food crop production system, if given more attention by farmers and backed up by policy, may be an acceptable and feasible way of stemming the declining trend in soil productivity in southern Nigeria.

Agricultural Information Provision in Nigeria

The agricultural knowledge of farmers is vital in increasing food production in Nigeria. A study carried out to ascertain why farmers do not receive adequate information on the results of agricultural research revealed that personal contacts and agricultural shows were the media most widely used by extension officers in disseminating information to farmers, whilst, for the farmers, extension officers were the most important information resource persons and radio and television talks the most frequently used communications media. Extension officers obtain their information mainly from workshops, seminars and reports. The information-disseminating capability of extension officers should be strengthened through the provision of information by librarians. Salesmen can also provide information to farmers and extension officers by visiting rural communities regularly.

The national accelerated food production project as a strategy for increased food production in Nigeria: A review of problems and prospects with particular reference to sorghum, millet and wheat

Over the years, Nigeria's food problems have prompted the initiation of various government-sponsored agricultural development programmes. The National Accelerated Food Production Project (NAFPP), is one of the more recent of such initiatives. The primary goal of this paper is to give an overview of the NAFPP system and to indicate major problems that tend to constrain its success, with particular reference to sorghum, millet and wheat. Problems highlighted by the paper include the introduction of seed varieties which do not meet farmers' traditional preferences, the shortage of field extension staff, poor funding by state governments and inadequate co-ordination of NAFPP activities with other related government agricultural programmes. Prospects of the NAFPP as a strategy for increased food production are examined. The paper concludes that the NAFPP, if well managed, provides the true basis of a ‘Green Revolution’ in Nigeria.

Rôle of agro-industries in increasing food production in Nigeria

In this paper, an attempt is made to highlight the rôle of agro-industries in increasing food production in Nigeria. This is done by pointing to the existing ‘food crisis’ in Nigeria as well as some of the efforts being made by the Government to reverse the trend. The history of the emergence of agro-industries in Nigeria is discussed and the factors which have inhibited their growth are identified, particularly in relation to infrastructures, incentives and the failure of the policy of industrialisation based on the strategy of import substitution. It is concluded that, in order for agro-industries to play a more effective rôle in promoting agricultural self sufficiency in Nigeria, there has to be bold and massive efforts made to develop the rural areas and to provide a basic superstructure.

A Study on the Introduction of Cassava

It has been said that there was no problem of food production in Nigeria until the 1960's. This country could produce enough food to satisfy her domestic demand which had increased very rapidly in coincidence with the rapid growth of population. Accordingly, numerous studies have been devoted to discover a mechanism of rapid food production.An influential hypothesis set up mainly by economists and agricultural economists is the land-surplus-economy model which postulates that the increased food production in Nigeria may have been achieved by the mobilization of unused or underutilized land with relatively small additional labor input. On the other hand, some geographers have assumed that the growth of food production can be achieved by land-intensive cultivation techniques which have been developed without a change in farm implements.In this paper, the author attempts to clarify the process of the growth of cassava production in Eastern Nigeria, hopefully, in support of the latter explanation. Originally, cassava was introduced from tropical America. It was considered to be a food inferior to yam. When farmers began to cultivate cassava, they had to change land-use pattern (increased inter- or mixed-cropping, use of manure, more developed crop complex). The author believes that they could manage it with relatively small additional input and that this is why farmers could feed a larger population under traditional methods of cultivation before the 1960's, particularly in Eastern Nigeria.