Cassava flour: A tale of two economies 

 

WHEN the late Oba Oladele Olashore, a renowned banker and finance expert, was dissecting the problem with Nigeria in a recent article, he left no one in doubt as to where the compass should lead. It is Agriculture.
According to Olashore, at the root of economic backwardness, stagnation and decline in Nigeria is the poor performance of the agriculture sector, which ideally, should have been the predominant sector. And, of course, the root cause of the rapid decline in food production is well known. Domestic policies with regard to agriculture have often constituted a disincentive for farmers.
Olashore is not alone in this. It has indeed been the aspiration of many Nigerians to see agriculture rebound in our economy to play a critical role in revenue generation and employment as in the past.
For instance, In the 1960s, agriculture contributed more than 60 per cent of our Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Nigeria was the world’s second largest producer of cocoa with 15 per cent of the world market, largest exporter of palm oil with 60 per cent market share, and leading exporter of groundnuts with 30 per cent of the world market. We also held dominant positions in the markets for cotton, rubber, hide and skin.  Although the farmers relied on rudimentary, traditional tools and methods, the sector accounted for about 70 per cent of Nigeria’s exports, and about 95 per cent of our domestic food consumption.
Indeed, the country has to go back to agriculture as the source of raw materials for our industries, for food for our teeming population and as a source of employment. The country’s massive investment in agriculture will additionally boost her foreign exchange deposit, which will be saved if we stopped importing what can be produced at home.
And one man in the struggle to actualize this dream is the current Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina whose recent bold step to incentivize local farmers, boost food production and expand export opportunities in cassava flour deserves to be commended.
But, on the contrary, Adesina’s ingenuity to empower local farmers and salvage Nigeria economy has met with criticism, mainly unconstructive in its approach.
It is well known a fact that, when you raise your head above the crowd, there is bound to be criticism. So, Adesina may not be facing a persecution not known to man. Indeed, the Minister will need to roll up his sleeves in this battle between evil and good.
The white wheat flour industry has in recent times whipped up sentiments against the cassava flour introduced by the Honourable Minister in order for the industry to continue to fleece Nigerians and keep our economy in chains. This is not unusual. It is the world-wide act of Corporations.
In United States, the bottled water industry is engaged in PR war daily to cover up the truth in order to continue to make sales, but recently the soft drink giant Pepsi has been forced to make an embarrassing admission — its best-selling Aquafina bottled water is nothing more than tap water. Pepsi has agreed to change its label.
A rival industry in Nigeria with their foreign collaborators has been working to frustrate the government policy to have 40 per cent of the cassava flour mandatorily use by the food industry. The white wheat flour industry has surreptitiously used their lobbyist to make in-road to the National Assembly with unsubstantiated reports of Cassava flour known to cause diabetes.
The industry in their desperation to keep control of the importation market in bakeries and confectioneries estimated that cassava flour is responsible for 30 to 40 per cent diabetic cases amongst Nigerians, saying it will be unfair to compel Nigerians to eat cassava products since most diabetic patients are barred from consuming foods such as cassava.
But it is important to deepen the understanding of the history, the experience, and the path of the enterprise in cassava flour and its impact on the people and the marketplace.
Cassava flour on the contrary to the white wheat industry’s claim as a major cause of diabetes is nothing less than half truth. Indeed, Cassava flour is a healthier choice for diabetics than some other starches because of its relatively low glycemic index.
The glycemic index is rating systems that can help diabetics predict how different foods will affect their blood sugar levels. Cassava has a low glycemic index of 46, which means that it is less likely than some foods to cause a rapid rise in blood glucose levels. If you are diabetic, cassava could be a healthier choice than white potatoes, which have a high glycemic index of 85 according to a study by America based journal, Diet and Fitness Today.
A matter of factly, several international reports have shown that the higher the Glycemic Index, the more prone to diabetic conditions the consumers are.  For instance, a 55 and below glycemic index is considered low while high range starts at 70 and above. Interestingly, white wheat flour at 71 (whole wheat flour bread also 77) makes Nigerians more susceptible to diabetics against the fabricates of lies by those attacking the cassava flour.
In one study published in the December 2006 issue of “Fundamental & Clinical Pharmacology,” none of the 1,381 subjects had diabetes, even though cassava accounted for a full 84 percent of their caloric intake. A second study, published in the October 1992 issue of “Diabetes Care,” noted that Tanzanians who ate cassava regularly had a lower incidence of diabetes than those who rarely ate it. The same goes for other African countries including Nigeria.
And recently news media were awash by a purported bill for an act to provide for the mandatory inclusion of cassava in the production of all flour in Nigeria and for other matters connected therewith sent by the Executive arm of government, which the Senate rejected based on Senator Peter Edeh (PDP, Edo) opposition against the bill with argument that compelling manufacturers of flour to include cassava would amount to compelling Nigerians to eat products that may be injurious to their health.
Although, the Executive has denied sending such a bill to the Senate, it remains to be seen who is behind the bill.  But, with my experience working in the Senate and House of Representatives on policy issues and good governance, I can say that corporations are very smart in introducing a bill through their cronies in the National Assembly, either to frustrate a particular coming public policy or to achieve their own selfish end.
The truth is, industries don’t like to be regulated, they don’t like competition, they want to deceive the public with corporate social responsibility (CSR) that is often lazed with profit making rather than the real idea behind true corporate social responsibility.
It is needless to say that the government may be right in its denial of knowing anything about the bill that the Senate attributed to it.
Perhaps the important question to ask is when did the bill go through mention, first reading, public hearing as a norm with the process of legislation that Nigerians do not know and suddenly we hear in the newspapers about its second reading and its rejection.
In Adesina’s words, “In considering the decision on cassava bread, issues of patriotism and national pride, economy, food security and sound science must be all taken together.
For far too long, Nigeria has depended on importation of wheat flour annually to feed its population, which is not sustainable politically and economically. Nigeria spends N635 billion of hard-earned foreign exchange importing wheat every year.
“And there are those who make a lot of money doing this that does not want any effort of government to do partial substitution of wheat flour with cassava flour to work. They are working for themselves, their pockets, not for Nigerians”.
I agree with Adesina. It is crystal clear that the cassava flour project will save the country about N635 billion a year when we substitute cassava for wheat importation.  In addition the substitution alone at 40 per cent will save us a lot of money, will help create a lot of jobs for the youths, create markets for our farmers, stabilize prices and give us a sense of pride in that we are eating made in Nigeria product.
Already, United African Foods(UAC) has begun the use of cassava flour at the rate of 10 per cent and some other bakeries are coming on board daily and these truly deserves commendation.
And to demonstrate government’s seriousness about the initiative, a number of fiscal policy measures to encourage the substitution of high quality cassava flour for wheat flour in the production of bread have been introduced.
From January 1, all equipment for processing of high quality cassava flour and composite flour blending as well as agricultural equipment have been attracting zero duty. There is also going to be a corporate tax incentive of 12 per cent rebate for bakers to encourage the utilization of locally produced cassava flour in the baking of bread.
From March 31, importation of cassava flour has come under prohibition to give ventilation to the local farmers and from July, importation of wheat flour and wheat grain will attract higher duty. While wheat flour will attract a levy of 65 per cent to bring the effective duty to 100 per cent, wheat grain will attract a 15 per cent levy to bring the effective duty to 20 per cent.
This is the first time a Minister of Agriculture will be dead serious about a change in our agriculture sector and Adesina should be commended.