Old age – or, rather, limited life expectancy - is thwarting Nigeria's chances of realising its potential as a force in cocoa, reducing growers' willingness to adopt a longer-term view and plant new trees.
The country, already the fourth-ranked producer of the bean, is "capable of tripling current production within the next five years… simply by implementing its existing cocoa development policies", US Department of Agriculture attaches in Lagos said.
"It is estimated that only about 20% of Nigeria's 3.0m hectares of land suitable for cocoa production is currently in use," and land that is being farmed is often being done so inefficiently, thanks to ageing trees.
However, the ageing profile of Nigerian cocoa growers means they are reluctant to replace them, even though new varieties require only three years after planting before producing beans, compared with five years for traditional types.
Age issue
"A major problem with cocoa production in Nigeria is that the majority of Nigeria's cocoa farmers are above 60 years, and most cocoa trees are even older with diminished production," the attaches said
Copyright, Blaise APLOGAN, 2010,© Bienvenu sur Babilown
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