Women in Agriculture: Cheaper, Highly Profitable Orange Fleshed Sweet Potato Bread — Baker
The average retail price in Nigeria of a 2kg sack of flour (Golden Penny) has accelerated, according to the statistics office, by around 35% in the 12 months to May. So has the price of a 50kg bag of sugar, which in his case has increased by 35% over the same period, according to figures from the National Sugar Development Council. This is driving the cost of bread to record highs, with a new price announced by bakers on Monday.
But somewhere in Nnewi, Anambra State, a farmer-turned-baker is using a new breed of potato, rich in several disease-fighting micronutrients, to make bread, snacks and more foods, which are not only less expensive than their popular counterparts, but are particularly beneficial to health.
MaryAnn Okoli, the owner of the bakery, explains how she is helping to make bread affordable for her community in the face of national shortages and how the support of international charities is helping to make this happen.
PT: You studied statistics, how come you are now in farming? What motivated you to get into farming?
Ms. Okoli: It's a passion and also what I hear about farmers in the United States, how farmers are the richest people in the United States. So I have an uncle there who always tells me how rich the farmers are, how good their farming is. So I started thinking that if these people can do it, we Nigerians can do it. It's all about determination. You start somewhere. All those short-term crops that are profitable. I started with a cucumber farm in Port Harcourt in 2017. The following year 2018 I was there and because of my dedication and focus on this field. I normally used Middle Belt workers.
Ms. Okoli in a cassava farmSo J I learned more practical skills from them. I paid them, I'll be there. I learned the practice then I would now add...
The average retail price in Nigeria of a 2kg sack of flour (Golden Penny) has accelerated, according to the statistics office, by around 35% in the 12 months to May. So has the price of a 50kg bag of sugar, which in his case has increased by 35% over the same period, according to figures from the National Sugar Development Council. This is driving the cost of bread to record highs, with a new price announced by bakers on Monday.
But somewhere in Nnewi, Anambra State, a farmer-turned-baker is using a new breed of potato, rich in several disease-fighting micronutrients, to make bread, snacks and more foods, which are not only less expensive than their popular counterparts, but are particularly beneficial to health.
MaryAnn Okoli, the owner of the bakery, explains how she is helping to make bread affordable for her community in the face of national shortages and how the support of international charities is helping to make this happen.
PT: You studied statistics, how come you are now in farming? What motivated you to get into farming?
Ms. Okoli: It's a passion and also what I hear about farmers in the United States, how farmers are the richest people in the United States. So I have an uncle there who always tells me how rich the farmers are, how good their farming is. So I started thinking that if these people can do it, we Nigerians can do it. It's all about determination. You start somewhere. All those short-term crops that are profitable. I started with a cucumber farm in Port Harcourt in 2017. The following year 2018 I was there and because of my dedication and focus on this field. I normally used Middle Belt workers.
Ms. Okoli in a cassava farmSo J I learned more practical skills from them. I paid them, I'll be there. I learned the practice then I would now add...
What's Your Reaction?
