Prices of farm inputs has gone up in Taraba state as a result of looting of government and private Warehouses in Jalingo.
North_East Trust finding revealed that the high cost of farm inputs may likely bring a set-back to dry season farming in the state.
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It was further gathered that the looting had caused scarcity of the inputs which resulted in sharp increase of prices of fertilizer, water pumps , pest chemicals, seed and sprayers among other farm inputs.
Farmers who cleared their farms for rice farming during this year’s dry season farming complained of high prices of inputs in the state.
A farmer, Mallam Jalo Garba said last year they were provided with farm inputs on loan by the federal government through the Rice farmers association but this year they were yet to receive the incentive.
He said a bag of fertilizer, which sold last year at N7000 now cost N13,000.
A litre of weeds chemicals, which sold at N1,500 now cost N2000 and all other farm inputs were affected by the price increase.
Mallam Garba stated that improved rice seed is now scarce in the state and middle men are selling the seed at exhorbitant price.
He said rice farming is going to be affected this dry season a development which would reduce out-put by farmers.
A large scale rice farmer,Aliyu Sarkin Noma told North East Trust that many farmers would not farm this dry season because of high cost of farming inputs.
He said the scarcity of farm inputs was caused by looting of government and private warehouses by hoodlums.
He revealed that the hoodlums have carted away thousands of bags of fertilizer, water pumps, sprayers, seeds among other inputs meant for distribution to dry season farming.
Sarkin Noma, therefore, called for urgent measures by both federal and Taraba state governments to remedy the situation.
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