We’re producing Faro 60 for 2015/16 dry season farmers …it gives 8 tonnes per hectare

Capital Agricultural Development, a primary seed company has showcased in the exhibition arena, varieties of various seeds, which interest participants.

An agronomist with the organisation, Joshua Joseph,who presented some of the products, said they are into production of high quality seeds, adding that they collaborate with research institutes for developing high breed varieties particularly with IITA, in Ibadan and IAR in Zaria.

The seed company has about 15,000 hectares of land in Kwali, Abuja. In those 15,000 hectares of land, they produce improved varieties, quality seeds for different geopolitical zones of Nigeria.

They showcased TGX 1448-2E of soya beans, non-shattering, higher in milk content and very good for feed formulation. They also have X-Kano and X-Katsina, which are sorghum varieties, good for the savannah and dry savannah belt, which also have a good malting quality.

“Sometimes, the malt you take, they are not malt per se and they are from this high sorghum varieties, ”he said

Also showcased were some rice varieties and some yellow and white maize varieties.

“In relation to ingeminating seeds, here what we do, unlike other crops varieties, we indicate them, the duration of days each of the varieties takes. So you look at your geo-political zone, you look at your rainfall pattern, you know how many days-If the days in your area is a short, like Yobe, you don’t go for those varieties which have longer duration. For example,Yobe might just have 90 days duration and if a farmer buys the ones that take 120 days, certainly it will not perform,” the agronomists stated.

Joseph also added that: “if we want to send some varieties to Yobe, we look for draught tolerant varieties, string tolerant varieties and early maturing varieties. These are shorter varieties but with high yielding ability.”

For rice they have faro 44, which is a medium term varieties, faro 52, which is a long season varieties but higher in yield than faro 44.

They brouth in another variety called faro 60 which has high yield but require longer rain duration.

“We now advocate for those who are under irrigation to do that. The yield it can give up to 8 tonnes per a hectare which is up to 80 bags unlike the faro 44 which gives you 4 to 5 tonnes per hectares,” the seed company noted.

Currently they are already organizing for dry season seed production of faro 60 for the 2015/16 dry season.

“But we may not be able to produce for everybody for now. But we are going to expand throughout-grower scheme,” he said.