₦airaland Forum

That's where the hard work comes in.
Quality and standard needs to be met
Consistence supply is another factor
Durability of vegetable is also considered

I believe we are getting there. A problem shared they say is half solved. Also once one knows he has a problem then finding solution will not be difficult.

jeffmyson:
Supermarkets (Shoprite, Spar) will only buy tomatoes that are of same size, colour and variety. Most Nigerian suppliers are not able to offer this because it requires a lot of sophistication to be able to offer the spec they need. Another factor is that most Nigerian tomatoes are open field farmed and deteriorate easily as soon as harvested. For tomatoes to last 2 to 3 weeks they must be harvested before they ripe and artificially ripened in a ripening room using a controlled method that preserve them.

We are still a long way from south africa and kenya who have developed an organized way to run successful vegetable farms.

nikaShow:
Its amazing to see farmers share their experiences like this !

Jehtro , God bless you...and be confident that you are inspiring many of we younger-aspiring farmers !

Thank you so much

Pavore9:
l have always had preference for d standard market option though it involves a lot of work to standardize one's operation bt once u scale through, d reward worths it. l have helped packaged organic strawberry & saw cheques change hands, it worth it!

The end actually justify the means. It requires lot of work and scaling through. But like you said its worth the effort

Liferace:
please who are the target market for those kind of tomatoes in shoprite and Spa?...and why is it so expensive?

The Ajebutters as my Oga Pavore rightly said. Nigerians are beginning to demand for quality. They are now concerned about their health. They are concerned of how their food are produce.

Kalusam:
I am following keenly because I know how important this is to me ATM.

Hmnnnn. See farmers

So very sure we were all amazed at the mathematics of making millions from both Open and Standard market. We will now delve into most of the mistakes i made that debar me from achieving my target millions in tomatoes.
I am sure there are a lot of "pinshure or I know believe"
Pictures will still come but i think getting it right is of utmost importance.

We have been discussing and exchanging ideas on the first type of market which i refered to as Open or general market.
Now the second type of market which I termed standard market.
I first heard of this type of market from the Pacesetter farms.
They produce tomatoes to supply Shoprite at Ibadan at N400 per kilo.
Once in a week they supply 500kg.

Hmmmnn. You wonder
What makes the market unique
1. The packaging and specifications are given by the buyers. Most cases a perforated paper cartons with label such as
1. Name of producers,
2. Day of harvest
3. Size in kilo
4. Weight etc
The tomatoes are also sorted out in Sizes and quality
Like earlier said, this kind of market demands for quality and consistence in supply.
This type of markets are Shopeites, hotels and restaurants, grocery stores, Spars. Eateries etc
Before you can supply, there must have been an agreement signed to be consistence in supply and to always bring quality.

Imagining you having just 10 of those network to supply throughout the year.
With time we may have to so some estimated counting's of all the standard hotels.
52 weeks in a year
500kg for 10 network gives 5000kg
52 multiply by 5000 gives 260,000kg in a year
Then lets assume we get to supply at N200
260,000 multiply by N200.
Do the maths yourself ?
But as usual, its easier said than done
e easy for paper to calculate roi
On a more serious note.
Have you wonder where these group of markets are getting their supply from?
Off course we all know they don't patronize the local farmers.
Nor did they source from mile 12 market
Guess what?
They import.
Import?
Yes vegetables and fruits are daily imported into Nigeria from other African countries

Its achievable sir.
But not sure we have the seed yet in Nigeria.
The highest i know is Pacesetter farm achieving over 30 tonnes in Saki East LGA. The seed was from South Africa.

You said it all about young farmers. Most are get rich quick. They want you to provide answers to everything. They want to stay in the town and farm.
They love to hear the millions stories.

Agriculture is practical. I have a mentor, an elderly farmers that tells me " You have got to be there to believe"
Farming is passion. Its for the passionate, the determined, the go getters.
Farming is not about having millions to farm. Its about knowing the right thing to do and doing it at the right time
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jeffmyson:
To be candid, no tomatoes farm will yield 100 tons per hectare unless it is grown in a green house. Dangote farm postulation is just a pipe dream and that is why farmers in Kadawa, Kano refused his seeds and asked him to try it out on his demonstration to see how it works first.

The problem with most young farmers is that they want to become overnight millionaire in farming business! It just does not work that way. We have people who just want to attend a 3 hours seminar and then start their own farm immediately and most times they always fail. They are deceived by those peddling those seminars and when they finally go into it, they find out its not that easy and profitable and they end up frustrated.

Farming is a vocation and it takes time and experience to become very profitable.

jeffmyson:
@jethro2, why do you think mile 12 is dominated by northerners and in extension fresh Produce business in Nigeria and in your own opinion can those fresh produce be grown in South West Nigeria?

My take on the whole issue is that the Lagos markets operates in cartels and tend to control the supply and in extension the price offered to farmers. This is where we need young savvy entrepreneurs to break the cartel and deliver quality, hygienic products at very affordable price.

The mass market remains the key to success in Agri business and I would rather sell 1000 basket a day for 20 naira profit than sell 100 basket a day for 50 naira profit. The money is in the mass market and we need to start seeing it that way and working that way.

Another issue with majority of our farmers is that every produce is heading towards lagos thereby creating a glut in the market which invariably leads to price reduction. There are many cities in Nigeria with less population but with good markets for fresh produce and can offer better prices.

Cheers!

On daily basis not less than 5 trailers enter Mile 12 with tomatoes from the North. The cotonou people are not left out in the supply chain too.
Lagosians are consumers(pardon me ooo Lagos people)
Yes the fresh produce can be grown in the SouthWest. Our soil are fertile than even the soil in the North.

Absolutely right sir. The Mile 12 markets operates like cabals. You have to get in through a Northerners link or no way for you.
Mile 12 market is an eyesore when its come to hygienic.
Each time i supply, within me i know i am sending my produce to be contaminated. Its that bad
Mass markets requires mass production. Where are the producers. Most young people view farm work as an end to a means and not as agribusiness.
What you hear on daily basis is " make quick money and get ou" It does not work that way

There are lots of markets for fresh vegetables in Nigeria. One just need to explore it

boluwajokosegun:
Well done @ Jetro...

Thank you sir

snowballa:
Following you

Thanks for following

jasper7:
still saturday, the 17th.
After agreeing to visit the farm and work. me and my team set out to the farm, on getting there. I must confess, the land mass seemed to have multiplied itself 10X. it was looking more like 70acres to me. my hand no fit lift implement again. Manual Labour no be here at all.

We all agreed that the first step would be getting read of the pests as much as possible. how do we achieve? set the whole bush around on fire . Me I quickly told them that I have no experience in bush burning. I have never been involved in bush burning. .
Jethro and kalusam are the professional in that field.

oya bring matches! They brought. oya Jethro start fire! she tried but couldn't (after like 10 attempts). bush burning no easy o. Kalusam now stepped up first strike of the match, and the bush was on fire!!! It was amazing!! I have never seen stuff like that before. the way he was piloting the fire and chasing it made me give him a royal title (Osuofia one of saki east ). Altho the fire quenched later in the most anti-climatic way. it had done quite some work. it was interesting. we had fun.

Lol. @ 10 attempts. Who was counting for you?

Mile 12 stand out as the main fresh vegetable market in Nigeria.
Its purely dominated by the Northerners.
Why
90% of vegetables consumed in Lagos are brought in from the North. Virtualy nothing is produced in the. South west.
Lagos alone has over 10,000,000 million people.
Like i earlier said, tomatoes has no enemy. Its consume by all

That last calculation was similar to what I got from my friends.
To the question 2
Yes. its achievable
To the question 1
No. I did not make N10,000,000.
Rather I lost all my investment
WHY and HOW?
Part of what i will be writting about.

Now that we understand the different type of market., lets compare price.
For open market
The biggest basket of 50kg and above can go as low as N2,000 and can be as high as N15,000.
Remember there are seasons for this prices which an intending tomato millionaire is suppose to work with.
If a farmer produces tomatoes at suppised 20 tonnes per hectare.
20 tonnes is 20,000 kilo
Big basket of 50 kilo means 400 baskets
During the low price=400×2000 800000
During the high price=400×15,000. please calculate that.
Hmnnnnnnn.
Na sooooo
Na so e easy?
Yes na so e easy for paper calculation oooo

Liferace:
Following.....nice!!

Thank you

hotmas911:
Please continue.

Our Landlord. I see you o

2. Standard Market
a. Fixed price. From N100 per kg to N500 per kg
b. Agreement to supply throught the year. No dry or rainy season recognition
c. Request for standard and quality
d. Standard measurement. Buys in kilo
e. Good packaging. plastic crates or cartons with names and tag require
f. Traceability. Source and type of seed use. Farm visits. Quantity of pesticide and insecticides. etc

Still on calculation
There are two markets for tomato as i classified it
1 The open market
2 The standard market
1. The Open market
a. it has no fixed price.
Price drops drastically during the rainy season and increases astronomically during the dry season
b. Price fluctuates at any time of the day, week or year. A basket sold in the morning for N5,000 may go as low as N2,000 by evening. Its vice versa
c. Requires no quality nor standard. (Tomato is tomato)
d. No standard measurement. Make use of various size of raffia basket. Small, medium and the big ones commonly called the hausa basket.
The small size ranges from 10-15kilo
The medium sizes ranges between 30-35kilo
The big ones(hausa basket) 50kilo and above
e. Every market like Mile 12, Ile epo etc belongs to this group.

I will start from question 2 first. Keeping question 1 till later date.
Is it possible to make N10,000,000 from an hectare of tomato?

From calculation
An hectare of tomato should yield minimum of 20tonnes from an hectare.
40 tonnes has been achieved in Benin Republic.
Dangote proposed tomato factory recently announced planting a variety that will yield 100 tonnes from the same hectare

DID I MADE THE N10,000,000?
IS IT POSSIBLE TO MAKE N10,000,000 FROM AN HECTARE OF TOMATO?

HMNMNN
These are the questions you will have to unravelled as we read on

I ventured into tomatoes production by mistake but I have never regrets it. Infact I keep praying for the person that introduce me to the system. What mistake you wondered.
A friend got an irrigation land from a government agency in Saki area. She told me from an hectare of tomato you can make N10,000,000 in less than 5months.
Wow!!!!!!!!!!!!
That kind money?
Are you sure? I kept repeating and she said yes.
So i delve into it!!!!!!!

Since the YABDI Ogbomosho project, I have received several calls and enquiries from nairalanders on the production and marketing of Tomatoes profitably in Nigeria.
Hence forth I am going to be writing on my experiences , mistakes, solutions and the way forward as Tomato farmer .
Tomato is a crop that has no enemy. No tribal, cultural, nor religious sentiments about tomato.
Both young and old loves and takes tomatoes.
Tomatoe can be eaten raw in salads or cooked in stew, soup and other delicacies

PLEASE READ WELL BEFORE QUOTING ME OOOO. THERE IS FREEDOM OF SPEECH OOOO

The Farmers Police is a fake individual that believes snapping pictures is what farm work entails.
The Farmers Police are people that deceive people with fake pictures that were taken from other peoples farm. Eg presenting banana pictures to ignorants as plantain pictures to capture audience.

1 The Farmer police is an attention seeker that all genuine farmers need to ignore. Such an id--ot
2. The Farmers Police is a old self proclaimed farmer member which is losing relevance and thinks he can gain cheap popularity by constituting a nuisance
3. The so called Farmers Police has a lot of handles but decide to come in anonymous because he is targeting some specific and suppose enemy farmers thread
4. The Farmers Police is an Empty barrel that makes the loudest noise
5. The Farmers Police is a faceless nonentity that has no clue of what farm and fam work entails.
The Farmers Police is a jobless youth that needs your assistance but did not know the best way to go about it than being a pest.

Therefore to my fellow hardworking and experience farmers, I will say save your megabites on something profitable.

Pavore9:
lt would because l recall being told by an organic farmer that he utilizes it alongside rabbit urine & dogonyaro.

I have read about dongoyaro(neem) being use for pesticide and insecticide. This are wonderful information

Pavore9:
Yes, it is of the sunflower family.

Soloxam:
yes it is, It used to treat Nematode, a specialist in NIOHT said so..... But I have not try it. The plant is very common here.

Wow. That's good news. We have it in abundance in my area. Now i better start working on my own organic fertilizer. Information is power

Is it the same thing as sunflower?

Pavore9:
The lush green plants in the midst of high-rise residential houses in Githurai, Nairobi makes the farm stand out.

Bananas, paw paws and indigenous vegetables that include spider plant compete for space on the about half-acre farm.

Robert Ngugi, the owner of the farm, has grown a wild plant known as tithonia (Asteraceae) on one side of the garden.

However, while he grew tithonia to protect his crops from dust since the farm is near a road, the plants have turned out to be one of his biggest saving grace as he uses them as fertilizer.

He was found pruning the tithonia plants. One would be forgiven for thinking that he was just trying to keep the hedge clean.
However, after the pruning, the farmer chops the leaves into smaller pieces and soaks them in a metal tank.

“This is something I do every fortnight,” says Ngugi. “It saves me plenty of money that I would have used to buy artificial fertilizer for my crops. I soak the leaves in water for two weeks before spraying on my various crops, together with the decomposed plant materials.”

BUY FERTILIZERS

When he started farming in 2010 after failing to sell the parcel that is a wetland, Ngugi would buy fertilizer to boost production. Each year, he says, he would spend not less than Sh20,000 (N40,000)

“I adopted tithonia after learning its value from an agricultural officer. It was by chance that I got the knowledge. That day the officer in-charge of Kahawa Wendani had brought farmers to my farm for lessons when he stumbled upon tithonia.”

The officer, Miriam Mugwe, saw the plant and asked Ngugi why he had grown it.

“That day I did not only talk to farmers about the other crops but also tithonia as an alternative to artificial fertilizer,” says Miriam as she recalled of the incident in 2012.

Having learned of the importance of the plant, Ngugi started using it as fertiliser.

“I normally harvest the plant’s small branches and leaves, then shred into small pieces and soak in a 180-litre water container. I ensure the plants cover half of the container and then add 135 liters of water.”

IMPORTANCE OF TITHONIA

He sprays two drums of the mixture on his farm, which last up to six months. “Since I started using tithonia, I now harvest eight to 10kg of sukuma wiki (collard green) from the same portion that I used to get 5kg a week. The organic fertilizer has also enabled me to pick night shade (managu) twice a week unlike before when leaves took long to sprout.”

Miriam, who works for the Ministry of Agriculture, says many people do not know the importance of tithonia as an alternative to fertilizer.

“I learned about the value of the crop several years ago from an institution that trains people on use of organic fertiliser.”

Prof Richard Mulwa, a horticultural scientist at Egerton University, says tithonia is rich in nutrients, especially nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium.

“Organic matter in tithonia helps soil to hold much more water and for a longer period,” says Prof Mulwa. “The nutrients in tithonia are vital in improving the size of leaves and fruits as well as making leaves dark-green.”

Tithonia, he adds, is good for crops such as melon, maize and a variety of vegetables like spider plant, sukuma wiki, spinach and cabbages.

“The nutrients in tithonia also add sweetness to watermelons. “Farmers should use tithonia to optimize yields.” Though the plant is widely used by organic farmers, the expert notes it is highly recommended to those who have used synthetic fertiliser for long as it does not only add nutrients but also the organic matter.

milvet:
wat do u mean by except u ve intention of add.... ?

Don't plant cassava if you are not processing. Before processing network your market and be sure of multiple streams that will buy from you. Every farmer in most villages has atleast 2-3acres of cassava

world1:
I called some of the above named cassava processing companies on behalf of some farmers in my area today with the response I got I have come to the conclusion that Cassava planting is a No Go Area Expect You Have Intention Of Adding Value to it.

Cassava prices are dictated by the processors. The processors give the impression that they will buy whatever quantity you produce but when you supply it becomes a new story entirely.
The best for a farmer is to either processed and sell to end users or not even plant at all.
Cassava is a no go area except if one wants to gamble with his money

Pavore9:
l recall visiting a diary farm about an hour drive from Nairobi, each of he cows there produces 33 litres of milk daily as they are crossbreed of the friesian heifer with semen from a fleckvieh bull. l buy fresh milk (pasteurized) from the dispensing machine at N130 per litre.

Imagine!!!!!. And we are here battling with 1-2 litre per cow. One can import cows to crossbreed with our local ones. Learnt the local ones are resistance to a lot of environmental factors which the foreign breed are not.

Pavore9:
1-2litre is way too low!

Extremely low but thats what we have here. Gen Abubakars Farm, Maizube in Minna however have some of the good cows. He uses the cow milk for yoghurt. There is massive oppourtunity in that line