Oyeniran Michael

A farmer I know planted 6000 heaps of yam at last planting season. At harvest he barely get enough to feed his family Another farmer planted 4,000 heaps. They could hardly eat pounded yam for about 10 times at harvest. When asked what could cause the poor harvest. Farmer A: It's God that choose whatever he shares. It might be good this year while the following year could be bad. Farmer B: Believe the same theory Two years ago I took several pick up to the market, farmer B add to his story. But this is what God bless me with this year Same story with some other Farmers too. I think majority of Farmers in Nigeria and Africa as a whole are gamblers. Farmers gambled with rainfall They gambled with soil They gamble with pesticide They gamble with planting time Israel develop a good water conservation and Irrigation system because they study and understand their rain pattern. I use to think yam matured in 12 months until I took time to study the planting system Yam matured within 3 - 4 months * But our Farmers start making Yam heaps by September and October when the soil is still soft. * The yam will be planted by March and April in expectation of rain * Harvesting is July, August Yam automatically need water The yam sett get bad in the soil due to lack of water. Irrigation will be a very great advantage. Hence the great reduction in harvest. Don't even bother asking if the soil is rich or not. The yam also require staking with trellis. Just like we do our cucumber. Currently yam farming is not profitable because of bad agricultural practises. The rural farmers will however tell you that this is how their great great grandfather has been planting yam before you were born. And the surprising thing is that the suppose modern day farmer did not research on the best way to grow profitably but choose to follow the same way our great great grandfather has been planting but expecting a different result. Yam by my understanding can be grow all year round and it will be highly profitable if all good agricultural practises is employed -farmritewithYinka

A quick word of advice for Palm Oil traders right now: ​I see people asking sellers to send palm oil down to Kano on consignment. Please be careful, once you send your oil out without complete payment, you might never get that money back! Unless you are dealing with your own sibling, do not send anyone your product without full payment upfront during these times. ​Prices over there are dropping daily. Remember, Kano doesn't rely on local supply alone, tons of imported oil enter that market every single day. ​When I was active in that market, buyers would pay half and stall on the rest. Getting your balance is near impossible if you are not there physically to monitor things. ​Once you aren't present, the excuses start rolling in: ​They’ll claim the oil has water or bad quality. ​They’ll claim they had to recook or refill it. ​They’ll use any trick to cheat you and deduct from your final payment. ​Hold your oil and sell wherever you are so you can get your cash directly. Palm oil is still a great business, but handling it carelessly in a down market leads to regrets. When the demand bounces back, we’ll all smile again. It’s just a phase, and we will get through it. ​— Helen

Congratulations farmer !