CHAPTER ONE

                                INTRODUCTION                

BACKGROUND OF STUDY

        cassava is a staple food crop, which is mostly grown all southern part of Nigeria timothy as well as in the middle belt and mainly also originate in brazil or central America, the root tuber are processed into several forms of food lie garri, fufu or tapica flow.

    The cassava is treated in thus project in this project reveal its levels of production and processing through the tuber root. They are rich in food stuff to man. The leaves are also used as vegetables in soups, while the peels are feeds to live stock and also the tuber are rich source of carbohydrate they are also found to contain some vitamins such as vitamin c and a well as some trace of phosphorous and iron.

    The plant is woody and may grow up to the height of 1m to 4m depending on the variety. The main stems and the branches contain knoblike scar, which are the point of leaf attachment, many people both men and women have engage themselves in trading with cassava processed one way or the other.

    And there are two types of cassava, differentiated by the prussic content (hydrocyanic acid contained in the tuber).

i.            The sweet cassava:- this contain low level of poisonous prussic in the flesh of the tuber with high concentration in the peels

ii.          The bitter cassava: - this contain high amount of prussic acid in the flesh of the tuber with lower concentration in peels.

    But the farmers are able to cultivated or process them. Today (mamhot Escalante does not exist in the state spread plant important not exist in the mostly area)

STATEMENT OF PROBLEMS

    This study is to investigate various techniques of method of producing and processing cassava in Nigeria and also considers the various stages ranging from planting of stem cutting to the harvesting and finally processing of the products.

    There are many problems encountered by both rural and urban farmers in relation to the production processing and storage of both the products and the implements.

1.  Limited stem cutting i.e. Planting material

2.  Inadequate land due to land tenure systems

3.  Use of crude implements like cutlass, hoe etc

4.  Pest and disease

OBJECTIVES

    Objectives of this project are:

a.  To examine the problems

b.  To find out the solution to some of the problems’

c.   To investigate the production and utilization of cassava in south part of Nigeria and also identify the different forms in which cassava are processed into its various finished products like processing the cassava to garri or fufu e.t.c as a food for human consumption.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE PROJECT

1.  The research study will be useful to those  who are engaged directly or indirectly in the production and processing of cassava in south part of Nigeria in particular and the country as large

2.  The study is designed to look into hoe the production of the farm in southern. Cassava can enhance the well being of the people in this local government area and also mankind

3.  It will serve to encourage the farmers in the study area who take cassava production and processing as their last hope in life.

4.  The study is hoped to motivate the farmers to go into fulltime cassava production in the area.

5.  It is hoped that at the end of this project, the work will be able to expose and brings to the best, production and processing cassava in south part in Ovia Local Government Area.   

SCOPE OF STUDY

    the study is armed at providing a detailed knowledge and understanding of the operations, function and performance involved in the production and processing of cassava in southern part of Nigeria with the view of providing useful suggestion to ease the problems of this aspects of agricultural development in Nigeria.

    It is directly geared towards the application of production and processing concept.

HYPOTHESIS

    Some question to be tackled in the course of study has been raised as follows?

A.  Is any decline in the production and processing in different area of the local government area?

B.  What are the problems facing cassava production and processing in the area.

C.  What are the effect of cassava production in the local government area

DEFINITION OF TERMS

Production: the process of growing or making food, goods or materials, especially large quantities

Processing: means the used to making the production in order to serve as food for human consumption

Cassava: a type of flour made from the thick parts of tropical plant.

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