Blind Tasting

Nigeria needs fertiliser education to realise Dangote plant potential: AFEX

By David Whitehouse

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Posted on December 6, 2022 05:00

 © Trucks at the newly commissioned Dangote fertilizer plant in Ibeju-lekki, Lagos, Nigeria, March 22, 2022. REUTERS/Temilade Adelaja
Trucks at the newly commissioned Dangote fertilizer plant in Ibeju-lekki, Lagos, Nigeria, March 22, 2022. REUTERS/Temilade Adelaja

Farmers in rural parts of Nigeria have their own way of testing whether a fertiliser is worth buying.

They put it in their mouth and taste it. A sharp tang is taken as a sign of good quality, but a bland taste means the product is likely to be rejected.

The hit-and-miss approach endangers the health of farmers due to the chemicals in the fertiliser, while crop yields are not maximised as they could be, Kamaldeen Raji, managing director at AFEX Fair Trade, tells The Africa Report. Education, he says, is the only solution.

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