Agriculture expert Ismail Olawale urged local farmers to adopt a greenhouse farm to improve food security in the country.
Olavale says that the benefits of agriculture are enormous.
Greenhouse agriculture is an alternative method of farming, where plants are grown in environmentally controlled structures or buildings, which, in turn, leads to an increase in crop yields.
“There is progress in Agric-technology, which shows that the less plants are exposed to sunlight, the better and fresher they are for consumption.
“Greenhouse farming, in addition to its availability, is an environmentally friendly and alternative healthy way of farming.
“Food insecurity can be solved when the nuclear family also adopts a farm to grow their basic vegetable needs,” he said.
Calling for Nigerian farmers to accept various aspects of greenhouses, the expert said that knowledge would contribute to the growth of agricultural production in the country.
“I advise Nigerian farmers on a large scale to adopt greenhouse technology; many are now embarking on this.
“In Abuja, there is a lady farmer, currently engaged in aquaculture, a branch of greenhouse technology, where there is no soil for growing crops and receiving maximum profit from her.
"Most countries are moving from parallel agriculture, which requires a large amount of land for horizontal farming of the greenhouse product, where crops are cultivated in steps and layers," he said.
Olawale also instructed local farmers to learn the skills needed to make a greenhouse before proceeding with it in full.
“In Nigeria, there are many opportunities for local farmers to learn greenhouse technology.
“The Service for Research and Relations with National Agricultural Authorities (NARLS) works with international agricultural institutions to train farmers and extension workers.
“Nigerian farmers are sensitized to greenhouse farming, but the problem is that they are too tough trying to do away with traditional farming methods.
“Nigerian farmers are used for farming, because the greenhouse economy is technologically managed and requires a lot of time and patience; therefore, they choose the first.
“Although it takes a lot of time, the greenhouse will lead to an increase in agricultural yields”, Added by Olavale.