THE Osun State Government has inaugurated a Osun Beef Production outfit to enhance self-reliance in food production in the state and capture the South-West cattle market.
In a statement on Sunday, Governor Rauf Aregbesola said his government established the ranch to boost agriculture, food production, food processing and mass food production in the state.
Aregbesola during the commissioning of the ranch located at Oloba Farm Settlement in Iwo, said animal rearing and production became a paramount economic programme for the state to meet up with the huge market for cattle in Lagos and other neigbhouring states.
He said, “As a government we must be able to produce the food we eat. To me, a government cannot be said to be good if it is incapable of feeding its own people. This is why we promised to focus on animal rearing and food production, which are paramount to our development.
“In Lagos alone, 6000 cows are slaughtered daily and no state in South-West produces a single one. All these animals come from the North. We intend to target just 10 percent of the Lagos market. This will certainly boost the economic, as well as agro-based industry of our state.”
He said 30 foreign species, called the Zambian Boran, would be introduced to the ranch with a view to genetically crossbreed them with local ones to get a new indigenous species.
He said the ranch would be run on public private partnership basis, and would feature modern abattoir that offers services to the people at a lower rate.
October 22, 2012 by Sodiq Oyeleke
Written by NEWSTRAWL ONLINE UPDATE
Sodiq Oyeleke is a Media, Human Resources, Project Management and Public Relations Practitioner
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