Paul Ilona, the Country Manager of Harvestplus, an international agriculture organization disclosed that eighteen bio-fortified varieties which are bred conventionally have been released officially in Nigeria.
According to him, over two million farmers are estimated to be growing the bio-fortified crops. These eighteen bio-fortified varieties comprises of six vitamins A cassava, eight vitamin A maize, two orange sweet potatoes and two iron and zinc sorghum.
In an interview with NAN, he said that the aim of the organization was to tackle hidden hunger on a global scale by ensuring vitamins and minerals in food crops.
He mentioned that the organization was working with partners to build sustainable food systems.
He also said that an estimated 3,000 participants and 10,000 attendees would converge at the Michael Okpara Square, on Nov. 28-30, 2017, at Enugu, for the 2017 Nutritious Food Fair (NFF).
The aim is to improve the livelihood of Nigerians and bridge the gap between agriculture and nutrition.
The fair will be hosted by Harvestplus in partnership with International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and National Root Crop Research Institute (NRCRI).
IIona hoped that the fair would result in success for a new generation of micro, small and medium-scale businesses and investors in nutritious food. He said they are expecting at least 10, 000 attendees across the world.
Moreso, at the fair which will be funded by Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, USAID and DFID, HarvestPlus intends to unveil the model of the largest nutritious cassava dish.
It was reported that Harvestplus and its partners developed new varieties of staple food crops with higher amounts of vitamin A, iron or zinc to consumers in an effort to tackle malnutrition.
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