Market instability: Onion farmers seek FG’s intervention

Stakeholders in the onions sub-sector have sought for the intervention of the Federal Government to address frequent glut and scarcity.

Aliyu Isa Maitasamu made the call in Abuja after he was elected the president of the National Onions Producers Processors and Marketers Association of Nigeria (NOPPMAN). He said the scarcity of onions in the country recently needed combined efforts to tackle.

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He, however, said the problem started in Nigeria last year when a disease known as purple blotch attacked farms, which affected the harvest and thereafter depleted onion reserve in the country.

“About N4 billion worth of farm investments were lost, mostly in Kebbi, Sokoto and Gombe states. We wrote to the appropriate authority about the issue, but nothing was done.

“There was also the issue of COVID-19 lockdown when movements were restricted in many states.

“Onion is a perishable produce, so a large number of the commodity got perished at both storage and market facilities at the time,’’ he said.

The new leader of the farmers noted that the last thing that broke the camel’s back was the floods that destroyed many farms in many states.

“The remains is what you have available at the market currently, and everyone is feeling the impact of its cost,’’ he said.

Maitasamu, therefore, urged the Federal Government to intervene by assisting them with working inputs and storage facilities, which, according to him, will boost the nation’s economy through the export of the commodity.

The NOPPMAN leader also informed that the association lost 17 of its members, 74 trucks, 104 shops, 15 utility vehicles and about 400 bags of onions to the EndSARS  protest, specifically in Abia and Rivers states. He called on government to compensate them for the lost.