Farmers in Taraba State are counting heavy losses following a sharp drop in the prices of major food crops, especially paddy rice and maize, in markets across the state.
A Daily Trust correspondent who visited some farming communities reports that the current market prices have fallen far below production costs, leaving many farmers unable to recover even half of their investments after harvest.
Yau Aliyu, a small-scale maize farmer in Jalingo, said he invested N1.4 million from planting to harvest but was only able to harvest 30 bags of 100kg each.
“With maize selling for N20,000 per bag, I will get just N600,000 after selling all 30 bags,” he said. “This means I have lost N800,000. The low price has crippled my plan for irrigation farming this season.”
He said the loss was a discouraging sign for farmers, warning that continued price crashes would make food production unprofitable.
In Mutum Biyu, Gassol Local Government Area, another farmer, Nuhu Dauda, said he survived major losses only because he harvested melon seeds and soya beans, which yielded some profit.
He said he invested about N3 million in his rice and maize fields during the wet season but recovered only 40 per cent of his investment due to low market prices.
“With maize and paddy rice selling for between N20,000 and N28,000 per bag, I can only get about 45 per cent of what I invested,” Dauda said. “If I had borrowed money from the bank, I would have been in serious trouble.”
He warned that many farmers may shift to cash crops next season and abandon food crop production — a situation he said would worsen food insecurity in the North.
Another farmer, Lawal Suleiman, also expressed frustration over the declining prices, noting that farmers bought fertilizer at N48,000 per bag and paid high labour costs despite receiving little support from government.
He said rice and maize farmers had lost more than 50 per cent of their investment, blaming the crash on the alleged importation of rice and maize into the country.
“Importation of rice and maize will kill local production and leave farmers in the North without any means of livelihood,” Suleiman said.
He urged Northern governors to support farmers through subsidies, grants, and market protection policies to prevent a collapse of agricultural production.
Farmers in the state warned that unless urgent measures are taken, many may abandon large-scale food production next season, a move that could further threaten food supply across the region.
