Kwara to import 800 cows from South Africa
Yekini Jimoh, Ilorin
Friday, April 25, 2008
ABOUT 800 cows are to be imported by the Kwara State government from South African breed of Jersey diary animals to serve the Shonga Diary Factory, which will commence operations soon.








advertisement


The Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Professor The Great Prophet Gana, dropped the hint while briefing newsmen in his office.


According to him, the improved breed of cows, which would be airlifted from South Africa, would arrive in the state today at the Ilorin International Airport in batches.


He added that the cows, said to be much efficient in milk production, would be brought in batches of 80 cows per trip for onward movement to the diary processing plant site at Shonga, in Edu Local Government Area of the state.

http://odili.net/news/source/2008/apr/25/603.html

read that story, its a nice step, worthy of emulation.

Follow the money-----there is more to this story I bet you.

No be only cow, nah elephant.

Are these people insane?
Have we run out of our own cows?
Do they know how many diseases they are bringing in?
IN fact, I give up
I feel they are just spending money unnecessarily

i believe these cows are of higher breed than Nigerian sufferhead cows

Are these people insane?
Have we run out of our own cows?
Do they know how many diseases they are bringing in?
IN fact, I give up
I feel they are just spending money unnecessarily

They are higher breed cows according to them but i still think there is some money laundering involved in this deal. EFCC will make these guys import oyibo shit one day in the name of improved manure.

I would worry less about money laundering in this endeavor; Shonga farms is actually a private business, the money to be used to
purchase the cows are not coming from the Kwara state government. The farm took out loans from the banks used to finance
its operations.

Actually, the title should be "Shonga Farms (Kwara) Imports 800 Cows From Sa".

The cows we have in Nigeria are all looking hungry and malnourished, we need more of those better cows

j-girl:

Are these people insane?
Have we run out of our own cows?
Do they know how many diseases they are bringing in?
IN fact, I give up
I feel they are just spending money unnecessarily

What we don't need in Nigeria are knee-jerk reactions like yours. Please read the article before commenting. it helps

The cows we have in Nigeria are all looking hungry and malnourished,  we need more of those better cows

Cows from adamawa and Co are not looking hungry abeg just that they are not genetically engineered for milk like the imported ones. I don't know why they didn't import calves anyway or are they scared of them dying? May be another state will embark on importing goats and dogs very soon.

Tonim:

I would worry less about money laundering in this endeavor; Shonga farms is actually a private business, the money to be used to
purchase the cows are not coming from the Kwara state government. The farm took out loans from the banks used to finance
its operations.

Actually, the title should be "Shonga Farms (Kwara) Imports 800 Cows From Sa".

Glad you added that cause I went searching for more information on this and how the Kwara state government is now involved in diary farming. Question though, why in the world is this being announced by the commissioner and not the farm personnel if this is actually a private deal?? I mean how did the government get into this one?? Considering the money came from the bank and not the government and it is really privately owned. I want to understand how deep the government's hands go when it comes to private companies in that country.

@ texazzpete - I read the article and I gave a brief answer. . . .

Let me clarify.
South Africa has a different climate from Nigeria. If we have a problem with our cows, they need to investigate what is going on with the cows. Chances are that the cows fare better in south africa because of better care, better vaccinations and a more conducive environment. When the cows are moved to Nigeria, some of them will die quicker because of our cases of tsetse flies. Apart from that we have only a certain kind of weather, hot and humid because we are closer to the tropics and this calls for a case of a different form of adaptation for the cows.

If the cows produce better milk in SA, due to disease infestation in Nigeria - they may become worse than our own cattle and some of them might even produce infected milk.

j-girl:

@ texazzpete - I read the article and I gave a brief answer. . . .

Let me clarify.
South Africa has a different climate from Nigeria. If we have a problem with our cows, they need to investigate what is going on with the cows. Chances are that the cows fare better in south africa because of better care, better vaccinations and a more conducive environment. When the cows are moved to Nigeria, some of them will die quicker because of our cases of tsetse flies. Apart from that we have only a certain kind of weather, hot and humid because we are closer to the tropics and this calls for a case of a different form of adaptation for the cows.

If the cows produce better milk in SA, due to disease infestation in Nigeria - they may become worse than our own cattle and some of them might even produce infected milk.

By this, I am guessing you assume the decision was made overnight, without thorough investigation by personnel at the farm to ensure that the cows to be imported are suitable for the climate in Kwara state and the environment? Please Stop.

Kobojunkie:


Glad you added that cause I went searching for more information on this and how the Kwara state government is now involved in diary farming.

Question though, why in the world is this being announced by the commissioner and not the farm personnel if this is actually a private deal?? I mean how did the government get into this one??

Considering the money came from the bank and not the government and it is really privately owned. I want to understand how deep the government's hands go when it comes to private companies in that country.

Because the govt wants to take credit for it. You know the Kwara state govt was the one that lured the farmers to Nigeria in the first place.

It's all politics my brother. God bless Nigeria

Kobojunkie:

By this, I am guessing you assume the decision was made overnight, without thorough investigation by personnel at the farm to ensure that the cows to be imported are suitable for the climate in Kwara state? Please Stop.

We are talking about Nigeria here, i wouldn't put anything past them. Besides, being that cows are somewhat large, it takes a lot of time to actually find out these things. Even if the investigation was done, there are long-term effects that just don't spring up overnight.

j-girl:

We are talking about Nigeria here, i wouldn't put anything past them. Besides, being that cows are somewhat large, it takes a lot of time to actually find out these things. Even if the investigation was done, there are long-term effects that just don't spring up overnight.

In today's advanced world, these things pose little problem as companies breed specifically for clients and their location. Take for instance Obasanjo's farm. The farm inputs breeders from all over the world, even the usa which we know is not really on the equator. Many farms in africa now import from as far away as china. I believe this is a big move in a positive direction, keeping in mind that this is a private move and not government but chances are high that they did their homework on both sides.

Tonim:

Because the govt wants to take credit for it. You know the Kwara state govt was the one that lured the farmers to Nigeria in the first place.

It's all politics my brother. God bless Nigeria

They came from Zimbabwe right?

Yes.

Those are professional farmers and they must have done their home work before getting those cows

Kobojunkie:

In today's advanced world, these things pose little problem as companies breed specifically for clients and their location. Take for instance Obasanjo's farm. The farm inputs breeders from all over the world, even the usa which we know is not really on the equator. Many farms in africa now import from as far away as china. I believe this is a big move in a positive direction, keeping in mind that this is a private move and not government but chances are high that they did their homework on both sides.

Don't get me wrong - I think they deserve A for effort. I'm just saying that there is also a great chance that their plans might not work out as well as intended. Studies have been shown that introduction of new breeds are more likely to have adverse effects on the environment.
If cows are not producing enough milk, then something is wrong somewhere. I think they need to do a lot of investigation on the cows they have now and try to make it work.
Let's see what happens after they get them. . . . they might even have new traits that will negatively affect the cows that they have now.

j-girl:

Don't get me wrong - I think they deserve A for effort. I'm just saying that there is also a great chance that their plans might not work out as well as intended. Studies have been shown that introduction of new breeds are more likely to have adverse effects on the environment.
If cows are not producing enough milk, then something is wrong somewhere. I think they need to do a lot of investigation on the cows they have now and try to make it work.
Let's see what happens after they get them. . . . they might even have new traits that will negatively affect the cows that they have now.

I understand all you are trying to say but this fear is exactly one of the reasons for the food shortage we are experiencing in Africa today. People for fear of GM seeds, continued planting seeds with serious problems associated and look were we are today If you look into the agricultural industry, it is as developed as the rest of the scientific world. Many of these global companies are global cause they consider all these factors before deciding what to ship to clients and when. So do not be alarmed, these companies carry out extended research for both their clients and their own credibility .

Check out this site to get an idea of what farmers are involved in this case,  http://www.kwaraproject.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=38&Itemid=29

Kobojunkie:

So do not be alarmed, these companies carry out extended research for both their clients and their own credibility .

Check out this site to get an idea of what farmers are involved in this case, http://www.kwaraproject.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=38&Itemid=29

Thanks for that!
Now I guess my mind is more settled about it. Seems they have a lot of good ideas. I only hope it works out as planned.

Glad you added that cause I went searching for more information on this and how the Kwara state government is now involved in diary farming. Question though, why in the world is this being announced by the commissioner and not the farm personnel if this is actually a private deal?? I mean how did the government get into this one?? Considering the money came from the bank and not the government and it is really privately owned. I want to understand how deep the government's hands go when it comes to private companies in that country.

I wonder o; You just spoke my mind.

In today's advanced world, these things pose little problem as companies breed specifically for clients and their location. Take for instance Obasanjo's farm. The farm inputs breeders from all over the world, even the usa which we know is not really on the equator. Many farms in africa now import from as far away as china. I believe this is a big move in a positive direction, keeping in mind that this is a private move and not government but chances are high that they did their homework on both sides.

You may have a point if this is a private deal and has nothing to do with govt but I must tell you that if the govt has a hand in this, they are in it for the profits from the deal and not the milk.  As such, they can arrange and execute the cow business in one week. No be Naija? Again, Will you blame SA if they sold you cows that will eventually die? Will you refuse to sell your goods because the buyer may end up not getting a better deal especially when the buyer is as notorious and rich as Nigerians?

If cows are not producing enough milk, then something is wrong somewhere. I think they need to do a lot of investigation on the cows they have now and try to make it work.

No, just like you breed some fowls for meat and some specially for eggs, Cows can be genetically modified to produce milk in quantities that are higher than normal.

TopBooty:

No, just like you breed some fowls for meat and some specially for eggs, Cows can be genetically modified to produce milk in quantities that are higher than normal.

That's what I'm saying - genetic engineering is not good. That's like another topic for another day. . . . . .I know they can be bred though.

That's what I'm saying - genetic engineering is not good. That's like another topic for another day. . . . . .I know they can be bred though.

Will you rather we forget modifying our foods genetically and stay hungry? We can create a 70% modified and 30% organic food state so that if you are rich enough to buy the organic one, good for you but if you can't afford it, go genetic and make sure food dey belle as long as NAFDAC is updated to forestall those that will try to sell GMF's in the name of organic foods.

j-girl:

That's what I'm saying - genetic engineering is not good. That's like another topic for another day. . . . . .I know they can be bred though.

Do you have solid information to back up this claim??

TopBooty:

Will you rather we forget modifying our foods genetically and stay hungry? We can create a 70% modified and 30% organic food state so that if you are rich enough to buy the organic one, good for you but if you can't afford it, go genetic and make sure food dey belle as long as NAFDAC is updated to forestall those that will try to sell GMF's in the name of organic foods.

Who is to say that GM has not already been in that country long before this?? I am betting that there are farms all over with GM seeds that may not even know of it.

Who is to say that GM has not already been in that country long before this?? I am betting that there are farms all over with GM seeds that may not even know of it.

True but it's negligible compared to the quantity the western farmers produce.

COW----South Africa? . Make una dey read headlines.

I still say follow the money trail (sniff, sniff---FRESH MINT!). I'm sure someone is keeping their fingers crossed.

COW----South Africa?    . Make una dey read headlines.

I still say follow the money trail (sniff, sniff---FRESH MINT!). I'm sure someone is keeping their fingers crossed. 

They bought cows for sure but it's the cost of bringing one that will be the problem I'm sure that deal will cost Kwara state about US $400,000(@$500 each)  and another $4M for transportation, lodging the cows in the hotel, medication, vet bills  and  feeding. Nigeria