Lagos: The National Sugar Development Council (NSDC) is rolling out modern planting technology to increase sugar production in Nigeria, its Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer, Kamar Bakrin, said.
Bakrin said the council has set up dedicated seedcane farms to support new sugar projects being developed on previously unused land. These greenfield projects involve setting up new sugar estates and processing plants with modern infrastructure, allowing large-scale and more efficient sugarcane farming and higher production capacity, reported Independent.
He said the council, through the Nigeria Sugar Institute, is also introducing modern planting methods, especially the use of pre-sprouted bud set or bud chip technology, marking a shift away from traditional whole-cane planting.
Bakrin said the institute is already building capacity for large-scale bud chip production and is incorporating the method into its research, training and field support programmes. He said the technology allows sugar estates to be established faster, reduces planting costs, improves crop uniformity and strengthens quality control.
According to Bakrin, the use of bud chip technology helps multiply planting material more quickly, lowers costs and shortens the project development cycle by 12 to 18 months.
He said the NSDC’s focus on encouraging sustainable investment will help strengthen Nigeria’s local sugar industry, reduce reliance on imports and support wider goals related to industrial growth and food security.
The council, last year, signed a memorandum of understanding with four new sugar project developers — Brent Sugar in Oyo State, Niger Foods in Niger State, Legacy Sugar in Adamawa State and UMZA in Bauchi State — to jointly produce 400,000 tonnes of sugar each year.
Bakrin said the projects are spread across the south-west, north-central and north-east regions to take advantage of different farming conditions and to generate wider economic benefits, including jobs, infrastructure development and growth of local businesses.
