Why #integrated farming is better for you.

Somebody said on one of my posts "95% of Nigerian farmers are poor". But really, that's scary. He said, they can't afford to practice integrated farming.

What is integrated farming? According to Wikipedia "Integrated Farming (IF) is a whole farm management system which aims to deliver more sustainable agriculture. It is a dynamic approach which can be applied to any farming system around the world".

My opinion: Farmers ought to be the richest set of people in the world. If they are in other climes, why not Nigeria? Though, I can't confirm the truism of the statement in terms of the %, but farmers ought to be riding #Lamborghini and living in Porsche houses. We deserve such lifestyle!

Let me share this with you.

Many farmers here in Nigeria have remained poor because they do not have the capacity to increase their food produce. They lack access to affordable loan (funding), land or even irrigation. Those who do, have refused to increase production for fear of post harvest losses. It has been widely said that in Africa, it is not that we lack the capacity to produce sufficient food, what we lack is the capacity to get our produce from the farm to the final consumers. What we call " farm to fork".

In my opinion, every farmer no matter your socioeconomic status has the capacity to practice integrated farming. You can either be a small, medium or large scale farmer. You become an integrated farmer, when you have crops/vegetables + goats + fowls etc. The droppings from your goats and chickens could serve as manure for your plants. That reduces your cost of chemical application (inorganic fertilizer) or production cost, and it reduces land degradation leading to global warming or climate change.

Rather than depend on just selling your plants, you could raise income from selling your goats, or chickens after giving you young ones. This gives you multiple income if you're fortunate to have consistent crop and animal production.

In other words, all farmers have the capacity to become an integrated farmer. Being an integrated farmer reduces your risk, as the failure of one, may not lead to a total loss for you. The difference is the capacity at which we're able to begin with.

I'd therefore encourage all farmers and or intending farmers to consider integrated farming system. While it is more profitable to practice economies of scale, I'd encourage you to start small, think big and start now. So, why not start that your backyard garden and add some chickens for regular manure? It will help you save more for your personal growth.

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