Articles
GOLD MINE IN INDIGENOUS VEGETABLES: THE CASE OF FLUTED PUMPKIN (TELFAIRIA OCCIDENTALIS HOOK. F.) FOR ECONOMIC GROWTH
Article number
911_31
Pages
279 – 284
Language
English
Abstract
The supply, and effective utilization of nutritional indigenous vegetables to satisfy a basic need of life, can facilitate poverty alleviation. Telfairia occidentalis (fluted pumpkin) a member of the family Curcubitaceae is an indigenous vegetable that is preferred to other vegetables in Nigeria and is sought for, because of its nutritional content and so, an increase in supply may meet the ever increasing demand.
The case of telfairia brings to highlight the economic potential of indigenous vegetables in our economy.
For instance, a typical telfairia farm using N 10,650 (US$ 85) worth of seeds produces 16.5 t ha-1 of leaves valued at N 212,400 (US$ 1,686) with 85% profit.
For one hectare of telfairia plot, a minimum take off fund of N 210,572 (US$ 1,684) is needed to give revenue of N 386,000 (US$ 3,088) and a profit over 83%. Total fruit equivalent of fruits/shoots produced 2,056 fruits and the price of fruit equivalent of fruits/shoots produced N 514,000 with a profit of 144%. Production constraints are seed and irrigation (respectively 60.7 and 20.3% of total production costs). Though farmers (80.4%) depend more on personal savings, 86.0% were prepared to access micro credits for the crop.
Since telfairia contributes significantly to human diets (especially micronutrients) and its production offers tangible income generation opportunity to resource-poor farmers, particularly women who are the main producers and marketers, the economic viability of the present study underscored its poverty alleviation potentials.
The market structure is such that both middlemen and retailers are actively involved in the distribution chain.
The producers store leaves for about 14 days within which harvest would have been sold.
Since the cost of production is relatively high, farmers are encouraged to form cooperatives for easy access to credit facilities in order to increase their financial production base.
The case of telfairia brings to highlight the economic potential of indigenous vegetables in our economy.
For instance, a typical telfairia farm using N 10,650 (US$ 85) worth of seeds produces 16.5 t ha-1 of leaves valued at N 212,400 (US$ 1,686) with 85% profit.
For one hectare of telfairia plot, a minimum take off fund of N 210,572 (US$ 1,684) is needed to give revenue of N 386,000 (US$ 3,088) and a profit over 83%. Total fruit equivalent of fruits/shoots produced 2,056 fruits and the price of fruit equivalent of fruits/shoots produced N 514,000 with a profit of 144%. Production constraints are seed and irrigation (respectively 60.7 and 20.3% of total production costs). Though farmers (80.4%) depend more on personal savings, 86.0% were prepared to access micro credits for the crop.
Since telfairia contributes significantly to human diets (especially micronutrients) and its production offers tangible income generation opportunity to resource-poor farmers, particularly women who are the main producers and marketers, the economic viability of the present study underscored its poverty alleviation potentials.
The market structure is such that both middlemen and retailers are actively involved in the distribution chain.
The producers store leaves for about 14 days within which harvest would have been sold.
Since the cost of production is relatively high, farmers are encouraged to form cooperatives for easy access to credit facilities in order to increase their financial production base.
Publication
Authors
N.I. Odiaka, E.C. Odiaka
Keywords
Telfairia, crop production, indigenous species, economic potential
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