A new variety of cowpea has caused excitement among farmers in Benue State who are now eager for the release of the seed so that it could satisfy market demands as well as boost their income.
The farmers believe that the new larger, faster-cooking seed would transform households’ income in their various rural farming communities, especially with its promising efficiency in the field and overall customers’ appeal.
For Wasem Kenneth, a seasoned cowpea farmer, this new seed appears to be the answer he has been seeking to address his customers’ concerns as he expressed delight over the weekend, when he joined other farmers in Makurdi to explore the new seed field, where he saw firsthand the potentials of the promising crop.
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“We have been growing cowpea for years, but customers often complain that the tiny seeds take too long to cook, which uses up their gas or charcoal. But this new seed is different—it’s larger and cooks much faster, which means less time and gas would be needed to prepare it.
“In the current economic hardship in this country, that short cooking duration makes a huge difference. That’s why I’m so excited,” he said.
Kenneth, like his fellow farmers, believes that this new variety could transform the cowpea market in Benue by providing a much-needed boost to local agriculture and income generation.
Our correspondent reports that the farmers expressed their hopes and shared their excitement at this year’s Farmers’ Field Day, an event hosted by Teryima Nigeria Limited to gauge farmers’ preferences and explore innovative seed varieties.
Earlier, an agronomist from the Joseph Sarwuan Tarka University Makurdi (JOSTUM), Dr Teryima Iorlamen, who conducted farmers around the field, explained that it was the handiwork of a breeder seed production company owned by an individual and not the university.
He described the new seed, the “Alkam Super” variety, as a game-changer.
“It’s a bigger seed with a shorter growth cycle, and the yield is impressive. We want farmers and stakeholders to see the potential here. We’re preparing to release this variety to the public soon. This field isn’t a university research plot – it’s managed by Teryima Nigeria Limited, and the results speak for themselves.
“We left it in the hands of a company and you can see the outcome,” Iorlamen added.
Another farmer, Isaiah Gabriel, hailed the innovation and urged producers to boost supply as he predicted that demand for the new variety among farmers will be overwhelming in the next planting season.
“Thank you for this incredible work in bringing us a new variety,” he said. “We’re aiming to produce 30 tons of seed to reach farmers across the Benue region. The seed is big, unique in colour and the farmers have unanimously agreed—it’s time to release it to Nigerians.”
On his part, Anyamkor Sylvester Gowon, who applauded the performance of the seed at the field, assured that he would adopt it on his farm in the next cropping season, especially as it’s a high yielding variety.
Gowon stressed, “This seed looks great to me—much better than the one I used before. The harvest is larger, and the seeds are bigger, though in between brown and white in colour. I would definitely prefer planting this one.”
Similarly, Martha Ngufan Ingah, a female cowpea farmer, was thrilled as she praised the new seed’s size, colour, and taste.
“The size is impressive; it’s sweeter, spends less time in the field, and cooks faster. I will definitely be planting it next season,” she said with excitement.
Meanwhile, Vitalis Tarnongu, the owner of Teryima Nigeria Limited, a seed company with extensive farms across Benue and Nasarawa states, pledged to continue pushing the boundaries of agricultural development.
Tarnongu noted that beyond his interest in agricultural development, he had always targeted smallholder farmers with improved seeds to tremendously increase their yields while paying more attention to women, youths and the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in a bid to enhance their livelihood.
In his views, although the new seed remains in the field longer than its predecessor, its exceptional performance, however, makes it a worthy choice as he posited that the difference has led to a rush among farmers eager to adopt it, especially since the breeding process involves minimal challenges.
He said, “It took less than a day to plant in the field. I planted this particular seed on August 25, 2024. The performance of the seed in the field is excellent as you can see—it’s been just over 60 days, and it’ll be ready for harvest in about a week.
“The great thing about this variety is that we’ll be able to harvest it multiple times, unlike the FUMPEA I seed. It’s still producing new pods, and our farmers are already very eager for its release.”
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