Dry Season Farming: Bauchi produces fertilizer, to sell at subsidised rate
Story from Ahmad SAKA, Bauchi
The Bauchi State Fertilizer Company (BSFC) has produced enough fertilizer for the dry season farming in the state and other neighbouring states at a subsidized rate of N8, 500, 00 per bag for the farmers.
Chairman of the Company, Alhaji Bappah Aliyu Misau, stated this Thursday when he interacted with reporters at the premises of the company in Bauchi.
READ ALSO: Gov. Bala launches 2021 farming season, announces N500 subsidy on fertilizers (Pictures)
He said the political will and commitment of Governor Bala Muhammed Abdulkadir, to revive the BSFC with the strategic injection of funds and other operational policies, will give life to the company and farmers in the state.
Misau said when the Governor came into office, some of the facilities were non-functional, the machinery was in bad shape and hundreds of the company’s workers were demoralized and despondent before the governor’s intervention, and the Federal Government asked the state to pay the sum of over N700 million loan for the raw materials they supplied for the production of fertilizer.
He said the governor showed the necessary political will to bring back the company as it is now performing because he settled the loan and raised production capital for the company.
The chairman said presently, the BSFC plant, works in three shifts of six hours each, producing between 10 to 12 trucks of fertilizer per day. Each truck carry 600 bags of the commodity and the company produces NPK 20:10:10, a suitable fertilizer for Nigeria’s soil mix, comprised of Di-ammonium Phosphate (DAP), Muriate of Potash (MOP), Urea and Limestone granules with the last two components sourced locally; they also produce NPK 15-15-15 and NPK 23-5-5.
He said they have engaged over 200 adhoc staffers who receive between N60, 000 to N80, 000 monthly and their salaries are being paid on the 20th of every month and the staff are well motivated.
Misau said during the rainy season the state government purchased 130 trucks of fertilizer which were stored in all the 20 local government areas warehouses under Bauchi State Agricultural Supply Company (BASAC). So farmers were able to buy the commodity at their doorsteps.
He said they are in talks with Gombe and Adamawa State Governments so that the company will produce fertilizer for them to use during the dry season farming.
The Chairman said that farmers from neighbouring states like Jigawa, Gombe, Plateau, Adamawa, Taraba and Yobe states purchased the commodity in the government shops in the local government areas nearest to them.
Misau said the importance of fertilizer in the overall agricultural value chain cannot be overemphasized, that it is needed to replenish lost nutrients and ensure that plants have the food they need to flourish.
He explained saying, “There are six primary nutrients that plants require. Plants get the first three-carbon, hydrogen and oxygen from air and water. The other three are nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. Commercial nutrient mixes also come in dozens of different ratios (nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium – or NPK -, which different plants require in different amounts).
“The secondary nutrients are calcium, magnesium, and sulfur. Nitrogen helps plants make the proteins they need to produce new tissues. Phosphorus stimulates root growth, helps the plant set buds and flowers, improves vitality and increases seed size. It does this by helping to transfer energy from one part of the plant to another. Potassium improves the overall vigour of the plant. It helps plants make carbohydrates and provides disease resistance.”
When asked about the high cost of the commodity, the Chairman said, “We have to get profit as a company, remember the Federal Government removed subsidy on fertilizer and the commodity is sold at the market at N9,500; some state governors purchased only 10 or 20 trucks and launched the farming season, sold the commodity at N6,500 just to celebrate and after that, you will not see the commodity again, but ours is genuine and we put it to compete with the real market price, we sold it to the government at N8,500 and the government is selling it to its farmers at N8,000, that is the governor’s choice but as a company, ours is to make a profit.“
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