Farmer attributes high cost of garri to decline in cassava production

A large scale cassava farmer in Ilorin, Mr Tajudeen Onilu, has attributed the sky-rocketing price of garri in several parts of the country to the decline in cassava production.

Onilu, who is also the Secretary of Cassava Growers Association in Kwara, told our reporter on Saturday in Ilorin that cassava farming activities had declined drastically.

According to him, this development has resulted in scarcity of cassava, thus triggering a hike in the price of garri and other food and non-food items prepared from cassava.

Onilu observed that that several young Nigerians who were supposed to remain in their localities to engage in cassava farming, had migrated to urban centres and taken to commercial motorcycle and other businesses.

The cassava farmer called on the Federal Government to introduce accessible and affordable loans to genuine cassava farmers in the country, to enable them embark on mass production.

Investigation conducted by our reporter in some markets in llorin, the Kwara capital, on Saturday, revealed that the price of gari had increased by about 100 per cent.

A plastic container of gari, which was formerly sold for between N180 and N200, now sells for N400, while the price of a small container of the product, has shot up to N40, from its former N20.