Source: https://fmard.gov.ng/robust-partnership-with-research-institutions-will-fast-track-the-development-of-agricultural-value-chains-agric-minister/

President Muhammadu Buhari has said that the nation’s Universities of Agriculture should play pivotal roles in catalyzing the development of the agricultural sector, stating that the institutions are cardinal tools for rapid transformation of the sector, as well as, a major driver in industrial development and diversification from heavy dependence on oil.
The President also stated that the Federal Government expects the rapid innovations, development of knowledge and skills of the universities to drive the increase in a local production of food and raw materials geared towards achieving self-sufficiency in food production for local consumption, export, and economic growth of the country.

Speaking during the 10th Convocation Ceremony of the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, Abia State over the weekend, President Muhammadu Buhari who was represented by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Mohammad Mahmood Abubakar, said that, ” developing educated farmers with requisite knowledge and skills will firmly position the sector as a business enterprise and as such, should be the primary task of the Agricultural institutions across the country “.
Buhari pointed out that ” it is expected that universities of Agriculture, should also, bravely confront the heavy dependence of the nation on imported food and raw materials with the view to reducing it to the barest minimum at the shortest time “.
Mr. President said that ” we can and should be able to feed ourselves on the rich soils and diverse ecologies that the nation is endowed with. We should be determined to wisely exploit the natural resources and inheritance of our nation to feed our people and possibly export to other nations. He urged the graduating students and the institutions to be focused and determined, stating that where there is a will, there is always a way”.

He appealed to the institution to develop technologies that would fast track agricultural production, processing, packaging and distribution adding, ” we shall not relent, rather we shall double our efforts at creating enabling environment for our specialized universities of agriculture to fulfil our collective dream of self-reliance in food production “.
President Buhari informed that ” the National Agricultural Land Development Authority(NALDA) has been reconstituted to promote mechanized agriculture. Federal Government expects that specialized universities of agriculture will collaborate with NALDA to ensure increased local production of food”.

Mr. President congratulated the graduates, their parents, guardians, and well-wishers and assured of the government’s continuous support for tertiary institutions and educational endeavours in general.
In his remarks, the Executive Governor of Abia State, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu, represented by the Deputy Governor of the State, RT. Hon. Ude Chukwu, stated that ” Universities of agriculture such as the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, have great roles to play in linking research, innovations and technologies to farmers and agriculture industry”.
He also lauded the diversification policy of the Federal government in the agricultural sector geared towards achieving food and nutrition security and generation of more income for farmers.

In his address, the Chancellor of the University, Alhaji Abubakar Shehu Abubakar 111, the Emir of Gombe, appreciated ” the cooperation of the host communities of the university and their support in enabling the institution to access the land.
He called on relevant government agencies not to relent in their efforts in supporting the tertiary institutions across the nation to enable them to churn out qualified students for a better-developed society.
During his welcome remarks, the Vice-Chancellor of the University, Prof. Maduebibisi Ofo Iwe, disclosed that, “we are graduating a total of Six thousand, Six Hundred and Six Students, (6,606) with four thousand one hundred and fifteen (4,115), representing the 2018/2019 academic year at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels, broadly distributed as follows; Bachelor’s degree 5,817, Postgraduate 92, Master’s degree 454 and Doctorate degree 243″.
Prof. Iwe emphasized that ” the university has a bright future and huge potential. We now stand at the crossroads of history where opportunities beckon on us to reach beyond ourselves, to overcome the base and selfish distraction that tie us down and strive for the things that matter, to dig into the inner recess of the gifts and talents God has given us. These will serve and promote the interests of the university, he counseled.

Source: https://fmard.gov.ng/agric-institutions-to-drive-industrial-development-and-economic-diversification-buhari/

The 4R’s of nutrient stewardship, or nutrient management, are commonly referred to when talking about proper nutrient application. The 4R’s stand for right source, right rate, right time, and right place and serve to guide farmers to the management practices that help keep nutrients on and in the field. Implementation of the 4R’s helps to align the economic, environmental, and social components of nutrient management. The Nutrient Stewardship 4R Pocket Guide helps to explain what the components are of each of the 4R’s.

The first R is Right Source. In order to determine the right source, the following should be taken into account:

• Are the fertilizer nutrients being used (commercial or manure) available for immediate or delayed crop uptake?
• Is there a combination of fertilizers that can be utilized best?
• What nutrients are already available in the soil?

The next R is Right Rate:

• Match amount of fertilizer applied to the crop nutrient uptake

• • What is the crop nutrient demand?
• Perform a soil analysis (manure analysis as well if using this as the fertilizer source) to appropriately match the amount of fertilizer needed for crops based on individual field fertility
• Make sure equipment being used to spread the fertilizer or manure is calibrated properly for appropriate distribution
• Consider crop yield goals
• Consider the law of diminishing returns: the unit of nutrient applied = crop yield increase generated.

The third R is Right Time:

• Plan for fertilizer nutrients to be available during crop demand – many times this is close to planting
• Consider the weather and seasonal conditions:

• • Potentially more nutrient runoff during the winter
  • Saturated fields are unable to retain nutrients effectively
  • Application of fertilizer immediately before a large rainfall could contribute to nutrient runoff
  • The MI EnviroImpact Tool is a decision support tool to help with short-term planning of nutrient applications
• Include mitigation of potential odors, mainly with manure

Lastly, determine the Right Place:

• Place fertilizer in the root zone, where crops can successfully access the nutrients
• Consider the management practices for each field based on the following:

• • Crop being grown
  • Soil type
  • Slope
  • Distance to surface waters
  • Soil characteristics (can differ throughout the field) like nutrient supply capacity and the vulnerability to nutrient loss
  • Phosphorus or P-Index
  • Potentially incorporate GPS and variable rate seeding data

This makes concepts like the 4Rs that much more important and valuable. 

Source: https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/the-4r-s-of-nutrient-management#:~:text=The%204R’s%20of%20nutrient%20stewardship,on%20and%20in%20the%20field.

Gro Intelligence estimates show that price increases in major food crops year to date has made an additional 400 million people food insecure. There are a few food security statistics shared so I want to define this as the number of people at $3.59 a day. To put this into perspective, that is equivalent to the number of people that China has taken out of poverty in the last 20 years. In five months, we have undone 20 years of progress. 

Furthermore, our economic shock models show that year to date changes in prices of agricultural products have already affected some economies by three to 5% of their GDP. Countries disproportionately affected are in regions such as North Africa, the Middle East, the Horn of Africa and West and Central Asia. 

And it can get much worse. Data shows the food security challenges we face will last several years. 

There are five major challenges occurring simultaneously that are each individually extraordinary. Lack of fertilizer, climate disruptions, record low inventories in cooking oils, record low inventories of grains, and logistical bottlenecks that have already started to unravel decades of global economic progress. 

Without substantial immediate and aggressive coordinated global actions, we stand the risk of an extraordinary amount of both human suffering and economic damage. This isn’t cyclical, this is seismic. It’s a once in a generation occurrence that can dramatically reshape the geopolitical era.

Fertilizers

Global fertilizer prices have nearly tripled year on year and quadrupled over the past two years because of supply shocks driven by logistical bottlenecks, restrictions on natural gas which impact the ability to produce fertilizer, and sanctions and export restrictions amidst the Russia Ukraine war. This risks significant crop yield reductions in key producing regions, such as Brazil, the United States, and Western Europe later this year and next year, severely impacting global food security and inflation for the next three to five years at a minimum.

Climate

Global drought conditions for wheat are the worst in over 20 years around the world. Major bread baskets such as the United States and Brazil, the world’s two largest exporters of agricultural products, are also experiencing extreme droughts. For example, Brazil’s cropland soil moisture is at a 20 year low. Major grain importers in the Middle East and Africa are also experiencing record droughts. Namely, we have both major importers and major exporters experiencing exceptional drought conditions.

Cooking Oils

The price of traditionally cheap palm oil has nearly tripled in the last two years. Driven by increased biofuels demand, drought in regions that produce alternative cooking oils such as Brazil and Canada, record import demand from China and the loss of nearly 75% of global sunflower oil exports due to the Russia Ukraine war. The recent export ban in Indonesia, the world’s largest palm oil producer, who is responsible for 60% of global production has added significant upward price pressure to vegetable oils.

Grains

Official government agency estimates from around the world put wheat inventories at 33% of annual consumption. Verifiable data from public and private sources that we as a company organize and then build statistical models to connect the dots between in our platform show that global wheat inventories are in fact closer to 20%, a level not seen since the financial and commodity crisis of 2007 and 2008. We currently only have 10 weeks of global consumption sitting in inventory around the world. Conditions today are worse than those experienced in 2007 and 2008.  It is important to note that the lowest grain inventory levels the world has ever seen are now occurring while access to fertilizers is highly constrained, and drought in wheat growing regions around the world is the most extreme it’s been in over 20 years. Similar inventory concerns also apply to corn and other grains. Government estimates are not adding up.

Logistics

Russia and Ukraine used to provide nearly a third of the world’s wheat exports and are in the top five exporters of corn globally. Combined, they used to export 75% of global sunflower oil supplies. All Ukrainian ports remain closed, making it impossible to move any of Ukraine’s harvested grain across its borders. Shifting to rail will move less than 10% of the prewar flow. It’s not enough. Russian exports, which also include fertilizer, are limited because of Black Sea maritime hazards.

Any one of the five things I outlined would be considered a major issue in commodity markets. The five combined are truly unprecedented. 

I come here today not to specifically offer or provide solutions, as there will be other venues to do so. But rather to X-ray and diagnose the problem for those of you in this room that have the power to change the course of our history. In a world that is increasingly isolationist, we need to come together. Food is personal. But our agricultural systems are global. 

There is no version of the world where every country has all the natural resources it needs to survive and thrive. One key takeaway from our data is how often we see repeated examples of cause and effect, highlighting surprising connections and interdependencies. For example, in the United States, the most self-sufficient country globally, a consumption-weighted basket of food – a grocery basket – has doubled in price since April of 2020. Price increases were driven by unprecedented demand around the world, which increased alongside climate related supply side shocks. We cannot solve food insecurity on a national scale anywhere. 

One thing we strongly believe is we can have a healthy economy and secure food system without degrading our environment. We have the capability to help everyone feel secure about having enough food. Data helps us navigate because we aren’t blind to food security related risks and outcomes. We can’t say we didn’t know.

There are positive solutions and approaches that can be offered and delivered but they will require coordinated global effort. We are all dependent on one another.

What does the data tell us about risk and interdependencies? It tells us not unlike the global financial crisis of 2008 there are fault lines and tremor-like early warning signals that are seemingly disconnected globally, but they aren’t. 

What does the data tell us about hope? It tells us that while the next few years are going to likely be difficult as a result of this statistically unusual confluence of the five challenges I shared, we can coordinate a global response, eschew a ‘to each their own mentality’ as to food security and climate risk, be willing to have constructive, albeit difficult, conversations, and jointly accept that what we have to address is less of a food shortage and more of a crisis of prioritization.

Source: https://gro-intelligence.com/blog/gro-s-ceo-sara-menker-briefs-the-united-nations-security-council