Nigeria: IITA unveils new varieties to boost cassava production
Cassava
Nigeria
Published Jun 1, 2022
Tridge summary
The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) has unveiled new cassava varieties developed by the NextGen project to boost cassava production in the country.
Original content
In a statement, IITA during a farmers' field day and product launch excited farmers in Kogi and Benue States as they expressed awe at the large sizes and number of roots produced by the new cassava varieties. The farmers spoke about the difference between the new varieties and the old ones, saying Baba 70 and Game Changer yielded more than local varieties, which they were used to. Some took a few stems to plant in their fields, saying they would love to adopt the new varieties. According to the breeders, while Game Changer can produce 32 tonnes per hectare, Baba 70 can produce 38 tonnes per hectare. It was also proven that the new cultivars were drought-tolerant and resistant to the virus diseases of cassava. Speaking at the event, a Molecular Geneticist and Plant Breeder with IITA, Dr. Ismail Rabbi, stated that years of consumer preference studies were conducted before releasing the varieties. Rabbi said: "In addition to high yield and stress tolerance, we found that these ...
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