The Vice President, Ni
gerian Institute of Food Science Technology, Chijioke Osuji, has called on food scientists in the country to be passionate about the development of the food value chain.
Osuji a food scientist who stated this while speaking to newsmen in Abuja, said the work of the food scientists started from food selection to the post harvest stage.
He said as experts, they should be able to investigate and come up with the best seed that would produce abundant harvest.
He described the value chain as mechanism which allows everyone involved in food processing to perform his duty of adding value before it gets to the final consumer.
“Food scientists are those that will take raw food and add value to it by investigating and finding out best seeds that will bring about best yield.
“They find out the best markets for such products by first defining the type of seeds, their varieties and all other components involved in the process,” he said.
The VP urged his colleagues to be actively involved in the food value chain process in the area of food security and business.
According to him, one of the challenges facing the profession was a long history of inefficient food processing technology and seed problem.
He said seed problems include inconsistency in use by farmers and the effects of native and wild varieties, adding that “post production issues like identification of the brands, poor infrastructure, high cost of power, scarcity of trained manpower and bad policy also pose a challenge.”
On the way forward, Osuji said sustained intensive seed distribution and adoption of a mechanised system in the development of the food value chain, would be productive.
While urging farmers to seek the imput of food scientists at the planting stage he further called on the proper ultilisation of land for farming through irrigation and agronomic practices among others.