Monsanto to Introduce 40 New Seed Varieties in Nigeria

Over 40 new hybrid seeds will be introduced to farmers in Nigeria, the Vice -President, International Raw Crops and Vegetables, Mr. Michael Frank has said.

Frank, at a press conference in Abuja said the company is ready to assist farmers to improve their yields.

“We will be testing over 40 hybrids of seeds. Farmers want varieties of new seeds. We are here to offer our technical support. We are focused on four main crops, maize, soybean, cotton and oil seed-grape.

“We are here to help farmers improve their seeds and farm inputs. These seeds will help farmers increase their yields and improve their productivity. We want to help small-scale farmers here in Nigeria. Especially to increase the yields of maize and we have interest in that,” he said
Responding to a question on the safety of Genetically Modified Food(GMO) he said:  “Bio-technology is a technology that helps farmers to farm efficiently and do it in an environmentally sustainable way.

“A lot of questions is been asked in Nigeria, and debate and conversations on GMOs are going on right now, and that is a decision the people and the government have to make. And we will support the decision.

“If you look at bio-technology, all crops are advanced to sophisticated breeding technologies, and there have been zero cases of health problems anywhere in the world.”