According to Price Prediction System developed by Bunkasa Agritech, which is the subsidiary of the Mile 12 International Market, the wholesale price of tomatoes Plastic Crate will rise up to ₦20,000, while Raffia Basket will increase to as much as ₦40,000, and onions ₦50,000 this year.

 

As the cost of fertilizers rose to ₦38,000, we must expect declined in food production, especially next year. Many Nigerian farmers have fingered the high cost of fertilizer and labour as the reason why they could not farm this year.

Despite the challenges, some farmers around Kano and Jigawa still tried to farm. However, lack of good seedlings that can resist hot weather is discouraging them. There is shanty Improved F1 seed from Hazera, which is usually used in the Middle East and in the Tropical Sahara. The seedling has been tested and proven but is not accessible to farmers in Nigeria.

 

During this off-season, Nigeria usually gets supply of fresh produce, especially tomatoes from Benin Republic, Ghana, Cameroon, Togo, and Burkina Faso. But due to the late border opening, farmers in those countries are not aware that the border will open this season, so they didn’t plant in abundance.

 

However, Nigeria doesn’t need to depend on it’s neighboring countries for supply of fresh produce, rather it should use that as an advantage to empower more farmers across the country.

 

Nevertheless, the Nigerian government, through the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Nigeria can invest in modern greenhouse farming by equipping more youths with technical know-how, and access to finance, in order to close the seasonal gap in fresh produce.