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Market Report: Cowpea value chain in Nigeria -

a worthwhile potential investment?
Cowpea is an annual herbaceous legume from the genus Vigna. Vigna unguiculata, is a
widely grown grain legume crop in the semi-arid tropics covering Africa, Asia, Europe,
United States, Central and South America. It originated and was domesticated in
Southern Africa and later spread to other parts of Africa and Asia. A major source of
protein, over 200 million people around the world rely on cowpea to complement staple
cereal and starchy tuber crops. Due to its tolerance for sandy soil and low rainfall it is an
important crop in the semi-arid regions across Africa and other countries. It requires
very few inputs, as the plants root nodules are able to fix atmospheric nitrogen, making
it a valuable crop for resource poor farmers and well-suited to intercropping with other
crops. The whole plant is used as forage for animals, with its use as cattle feed likely
responsible for its name.

The global production of

cowpea is 2010 was 5.5 million
metric tons (MT) with Africa
responsible for 94% of the
production. Nigeria is however
the largest producer of cowpea,
with production of about 2.137
million metric tons, yet Nigerian
famers generates one of the
lowest yields of 0.6 MT/Hectare
ranging 24th in the world
(FAOSTAT, 2014). Major
factors contributing to low yield
include: lack of seeds of
potentially high yielding
varieties, insect pests in the
field, storage insect pests,
diseases, parasitic flowering
weeds, drought and low soil
fertility.
Cowpea’s contribution to ecological stability is usually underemphasized. Cowpea,
through its symbiotic association with beneficial bacteria, fixes nitrogen from the
atmosphere to the soil and hence enhances soil fertility. Apart from cowpea’s
contribution to the ecosystem, all parts of the cowpea are used for food. The leaves,
green pods, green peas and the dry grains are consumed as different dishes. These
parts are nutritious, providing proteins, vitamins and minerals especially micronutrients.

The grains are rich in the amino acids, lysine and tryptophan, making it better than
cereals. It is also rich in vitamin B9, phosphorus and copper. Cowpea is also believed to
help in preventing anemia, cancer, diabetes, depression. Due to the presence of
tryptophan and phenylalanine, cowpea helps in maintaining mental health. Despite the
great potentials cowpea has in ending world hunger, most especially in Africa and Latin
America, it is neglected and constrained by many factors. In fact, it is regarded as an
orphan crop. So called because it is not traded internationally and therefore tend to get
less attention in terms of research of agricultural training and extension. Due to the lack
of research attention, the production and breeding of the crop is lagging behind in
modern technology.

CRITICAL PRODUCTION CHALLENGES TO COWPEA CULTIVATION

Pest and Diseases are the bane of cowpea production in Nigeria. A significant
proportion of cowpea produced is lost along the value chain. The cowpea plant is
attacked by pests during every stage of its life cycle. Aphids extract juice from its leaves
and stems while the crop is still a seedling and also spread the cowpea mosaic virus.
Flower thrips feast on it during flowering, pod borers attack its pods during pod growth,
and Bruchid weevils attack the post harvested seeds. There are good insecticides that
can help with pest control, but they are expensive and not widely available which is a
limiting factor and in some cases farmers have little to no access to sprayers or
information on how to use the insecticides.

The plants are also attacked by diseases caused by fungi, bacteria and viruses.
Cowpea Mosaic Virus is the most common cowpea disease. It causes decrease in leaf
area, flower production and can cause up to 95% yield loss. Plants shows sign of
infection with the appearance of neurotic lesions on leaves. The best means of disease
control is by planting resistant varieties. Cowpea Fusarium wilt is another devastating
disease of cowpea. It causes stunted growth and wilting. Brick red tissues are observed
in split stems. It can be prevented by planting fungicide treated seeds and controlled by
cultural practices like crop rotation, removing diseased plants.

Parasitic weeds—Striga and Alectra—choke the plants growth at all stages and
nematodes prevent the roots from absorbing nutrients and water from the soil.
POST-HARVEST LOSSES

Africa loses about 30-70 % of cowpea harvested because of absence of efficient

storage facilities. As a result of such devastating losses, many farmers don’t want to risk
storing their cowpeas. Instead, they sell their cowpeas at harvest time when prices are
lowest. With the availability of efficient storage, prices of cowpea can double or triple in
the off-season. For other farmers, they handle the pests by treating their harvests with
hazardous pesticides. In turn, each year these result in many people falling ill, and in
some cases dying from the pesticide poisoning.

INNOVATIONS FOCUSED ON REDUCING POST-HARVEST LOSSES

In 2007, researchers at Purdue University teamed up with the Bill & Melinda Gates
Foundation to introduce African farmers to a simple solution: an inexpensive, triple-layer
bag that protects cowpeas from losses during storage. Purdue University researchers
discovered that cowpeas stored in airtight containers prevent the development of weevil
larvae that feed on the dried cowpeas, preserving the crop for months—even more than
a year. The Purdue Improved Cowpea Storage (PICS) bag is made from two inner high-
density polyethylene plastic bags and an outer nylon sack. The rugged bags can be
triple-tied, providing an airtight seal for long-term, pest-free storage.

Purdue University partnered with International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA),

Niger National Institute of Agricultural Research (INRAN), National Institute for
Environmental and Agricultural Research (INERA), local farm organizations and
nonprofit groups to distribute over one million bags to farmers in Central and West
Africa, helping hundreds of thousands of farmers increase their incomes by giving them
a chance to get the most from their harvests and reduce their pesticide use. It’s a small
innovation but its impact has been huge. It has increased annual household incomes of
1.7 million farming families in West and Central Africa by an average of $150 by helping
them protect their cowpea harvests from infestation using innovative storage bags.
SOURCES

• African Agricultural Technology Foundation, Report of Small Group Meeting

(SGM) on Constraints to Cowpea Production and Utilization in Sub-Saharan
Africa. July 2003
• http://www.coraf.org/documents/fiches_projets/Enhancing_Cowpea_Productivity
_for_Sustainable_Livelihoods_of_Farmers_in_West_Africa.pdf
• http://www.fao.org/faostat
• https://www.purdue.edu/postharvest