FOOD IN NIGERIA

The Federal Republic of Nigeria has a population of 140million (2006 census) and the annual growth rate is estimated at 3%. Nigeria is made up of over 250 ethnic groups with very rich multi-cultural diversity. The country also has varying agro-ecological zones from the semi-arid in the extreme north to the coastal mangrove swamps in the south. Although the Nation depends heavily on the oil industry for its budgetary revenue, Nigeria is still predominantly an agricultural nation. The country’s tropical climate endows her to produce various foods that include yams, cassava, potatoes, rice, sorghum, beans, maize, millet, tomatoes etc and cash crops. The major cash crops produced in Nigeria are cocoa, cotton, groundnuts, sesame-seed, palm-oil, rubber and citrus. Nigeria has since lost its rating as a net exporter of cocoa, rubber, palm-oil and ground-nuts. Total arable is estimated at 30 million hectares, cereal production is 137,000 metric tons. National fish demand for 2008 is 2.6 million metric tonnes out of which local supply are about 600,000 metric tonnes. Nigeria imports about 700,000 metric tonnes of fish annually. The 1.7 million hectares of available inland water bodies provides ample opportunities and potential to boost fish production and aquaculture Nigeria’s food production index is 106.2% being 87th of 183 countries under the world food index. Livestock estimates is put at; Cattle is 16 million, pigs 6 million, sheep 33 million, goats, 53 million and poultry 174 million. Almost all rural households raise poultry as a subsistence source of meat. About 30% of the livestock slaughtered are imported from neighbouring countries. Increased pressure on grazing lands, trans-boundary animal diseases, ineffective livestock marketing system, lack of efficient and hygienic livestock processing facilities and poor genetic quality (slow growth and low milk yields) are the major factors contributing to the scarcity. Nigeria has 3 Federal Universities of Agriculture, 15 National Agricultural Research Institutes and 11 Federal Colleges of Agriculture