Ashimolowo, hungry birds fight over 140-acre rice farm

Ashimolowo, hungry birds fight over 140-acre rice farm

Many farmers in Ofada, Obafemi Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State, community known for the cultivation of rice in the South West, have abandoned the crop for a number of reasons, chief among which is the headache of controlling swarms of birds which destroy rice plantations.

But rice farming seems to have got an unlikely entrant in the popular Senior Pastor of Kingsway International Christian Centre, Pastor Matthew Ashimolowo.

When words got in about an expanse of rice farmland in Ofada, our correspondent paid a visit to the Meridian Farm Limited and saw harvesters working on the 140-acre plantation.

In 2013, our correspondent had paid a visit to Ofada, prompted by the strange development that such a community well known for the crop no longer cultivated it.

Farmers had said at the time that pests sometimes left nothing for them to harvest, which was why they had to abandon such an ‘unprofitable venture.’

On Tuesday, not until after a tour and an interview with the manager of the farm, Mr. Akeem Aremu, did our correspondent learn that the massive rice plantation was actually owned by Pastor Ashimolowo.

Rice farming in Nigeria seemed to have become a dying sub-sector until the recent efforts by government in encouraging farmers to resuscitate it.

Even despite this, statistics shows that a lot need to be done as Nigeria continues to consume more imported polished rice.

Nigeria imports 2.1 metric tonnes of rice annually, coming only second to China as the world’s largest importer of rice.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Nigeria spends over N356bn a year on rice importation. This underscores the frustration Nigerian rice farmers face as a result of unaffordability of needed technology, low and poor quality yields.

However, at Ashimolowo’s Meridian Farms, all these do not seem to be a problem.

A harvester rolled into the plantation, swallowing both chaff and grain, spitting out both from different sides.

Aremu told Saturday PUNCH that this year’s harvest was a giant leap from last year’s.

“Last year, we cultivated 28 acres. But this year, we increased it to 140. Our chairman (Ashimolowo) even wanted 200 acres but the time was not enough to make that possible,” he said.

When there was no sign of any hi-tech nets or other devices in place that could have kept pests at bay, our correspondent asked how they successfully cultivated the crop with the birds around.

Aremu explained that rudimentary methods of chasing away or ensnaring pests were actually used.

He stated, “It was all about planning. But make no mistake, pests were our major challenge too. But we were strategic about it.

“We divided the plantation into four sections and put at least 10 people in each section armed with catapults and whistles. We also used drums.

“We discovered that the birds swarmed on the plantation around 6am. So, we got to the farm before them and ready to scare them away with whistles and catapults when they came for breakfast. In the evening when we knew that they would come as well, we got there before them.

“Normally, the birds usually come during the most important stage of the cultivation, the milking stage. That is when the rice is still very soft and milk-like. Without adequate preparation for this stage, one may not get a single grain out of the plantation.

“A farmer came to visit us a few days ago and he could not help expressing his shock that we could successfully produce rice here. The man said he planted more than five acres of rice and he did not harvest a single grain out of it because birds destroyed everything.”

At Ashimolowo’s rice farm, the workers said they had to make use of a number of traps as well to ensnare grass-cutters, which are regarded as the bane of rice plantation.

Rice, which has become a staple in Nigeria, used to be the crop of choice for farmers in a number of communities in the South-West like Ofada. Over the years, these have simply vanished.

However, some entrepreneurs who have the financial wherewithal are bringing back the locally produced rice.

In August, Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Federal Government on the establishment of a $1 billion integrated rice-producing company in Nigeria.

When our correspondent took up Ashimolowo on the motivation behind his going into farming, he explained that it was the need to create jobs and encourage Nigerians to get back into agriculture.

“I believe we should not just talk but put our words into action,” he said.

He said the company planted about 500 acres of cassava during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo. He said no encouragement had been given into the earlier plan to make cassava a major ingredient of bread in the country since Obasanjo left.

He said, “All the investment we put into the cultivation of cassava went to waste. Then we decided on rice as a result of the proximity of the land to Ofada. We realised that it had the potential of creating jobs and reduce importation.

“As far as we know, this is the biggest rice farm in the South West and we intend to expand to 200 acres next year.”

Asked if his company got incentives from the Federal Government for the venture, Ashimolowo explained that his consultation with the Minister of Agriculture had not been finalised.

He expressed the hope that the farm would be provided with machinery under an arrangement that would enable it to produce large quantities of quality rice seeds which would be distributed to other farmers.

“We noticed that many rice farmers are still using mostly the subsistent method. If we get more machinery from the government, we can easily lend them out to other farmers,” he said.

Ashimolowo said he was aware that a lot of rice farmers had been finding it difficult to cultivate the crop in Ofada. He said he succeeded as a result of a combination of methods employed.

He said, “Of course, God made this possible first of all. We also put in place a pot pourri of methods. We thought that if we could plant in large quantities, the impact of bird devastation would not be felt. We also ensured that no trees are within a mile radius of the farm on which birds can perch.

“Our plan is to continue to increase cultivation to drive down the price so that Ofada rice will no longer be seen as exotic. We are in discussion with the Seeds Council as well on the possibility of selling the rice seeds for distribution to other farmers.”

January 3, 2015 by Kunle Falayi - Punch