By Ahmed Rahma
Golden Agri Input Limited (GAIL), a subsidiary of a leading agro-allied company, Flour Mills of Nigeria, has partnered with an American company and global leader in agriculture technology, AgBiTech, to fight Fall Armyworm in the country.
The partnership is to enable farmers in Nigeria, which has the largest maize acreage in Africa of 5 million hectares, have access to a biological tool known as Fawligen, that will protect their crops from severe injury and economic damage caused by the FAW infestation.
Fawligen belongs to the new IRAC mode of action Group 31 (host-specific occluded pathogenic viruses). It contains a nucleopolyhedrovirus specific to the Fall Armyworm pest and has been undergoing several regulatory trials and evaluations across several African countries since early 2018.
Commenting on the partnership, Mr Boye Olusanya, the Group Managing Director of FMN said: “We will continue to pursue partnerships in all areas of our core competence, particularly in agribusiness, where we hope to further strengthen our leadership position.
“I believe this partnership with AgBiTech is especially important because it offers farmers an efficient option of pest management products that prevent yield losses.
“Nigerian farmers who are looking to protect their investments will be happy to learn that FAWLIGEN is a terrific addition to a lineup of products under GAIL/FMN that have been developed to do just that.”
According to Dr Shachi Gurumayum, Head of Africa & South Asia for AgBiTech, “Fawligen has been tested and evaluated by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) for two consecutive years in Nigeria.
“Having access to a safe and effective biological control for FAW will be a welcome relief to many of the Nigerian farmers affected by FAW.”
Since 2002, AgBiTech has been delivering commercially proven products that help make farming more profitable and sustainable. AgBiTech combines field experience with innovative science and proprietary technology, working with farmers, advisors and researchers to develop products that deliver highly effective biological insect management solutions.
Nigeria is the first country where Fall Armyworm (FAW) was detected in Africa in 2006.
Modupe Gbadeyanka 
Adedapo Adesanya