Farmers in the Mbale district of Uganda had given up growing groundnuts because of their low yields and susceptibility to rosette disease and drought. However, the National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS) began a programme in Mbale three years ago to train farmers in new methods. New seed varieties were introduced and several demonstration gardens were set up.
It emerged recently at a parliamentary hearing on agriculture that if a farmer planted 32kg of groundnuts on an acre, he would be expected to reap twenty 50kg bags of un-shelled groundnuts.
The varieties being given out by NAADS under its technology dissemination programme are believed to have a higher oil content than traditional varieties, ranging from 40% to 60%, almost similar to the oil content of simsim (sesame) and sunflower.
A NAADS official said they intend to sell most of the groundnuts in the stores as seed to farmers for multiplication before opening up more land for cultivation.
New Vision
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April 10, 2007
New high-yield groundnut varieties introduced in Uganda
Categories groundnuts, Uganda
