Cut off middlemen in food supply chain, varsity dons tell FG
FORMER Vice Chancellor of the Osun State University, Professor Labode Popoola and Dean, Faculty of Renewable Natural Resources, University of Ibadan, Professor Adejoke Akinyele, yesterday, tasked the Federal Government to eliminate middlemen in the food and agriculture supply value chain to boost food production in the country.
Professors Popoola and Akinyele made the call during the 40th year anniversary and reunion of the Class of 1984 graduates of the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry, University of Ibadan.
In his remarks, Adejoke said: “If we can remove the middlemen from the food production chain, it is going to go a long way in ensuring food security in Nigeria.
“If the government can make adequate arrangements to get crops that are produced by these farmers to the consumers so that the middlemen are cut off, that is what we need to look into to ensure food security.”
In his views, Popoola who is the Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer, African Forest Forum, Nairobi, Kenya, stressed that with good climate and fertile arable land, Nigeria must have food security.
He said: ‘’If Nigeria wants to be involved in agriculture, it must have people who are committed to it. There must be passion and patience for it.
“My plea to the university system is to try as much as possible to train these students hands-on. Let them develop interest in some of these things. There are so many people in the cities who are supposed to be in the village. I have to hire labourers from Togo. There are Nigerians who are not willing to do it”. “There is absolutely no reason Nigeria should not be food-secure. We have what it takes. The climate is good, we have the land and the fertility of the land is relatively good. All we need to have is commitment and passion.”
