A COMPREHENSIVE & PRACTICAL GUIDE ON HOW TO START CASSAVA FARMING & PROCESSING BUSINESS By: Micheal B. O.
In the traditional areas of North and South America, the tubers are grated and the sap is extracted through squeezing or pressing. The cassava is further dried over a fire to make a meal, or it is fermented and cooked. The meal can then be rehydrated with water or added to soups or stews. In Africa, the tubers are processed in several different ways. They may first be fermented in water, and then either sun-dried for storage or grated and made into dough that is cooked. Alcoholic beverages can be made from the roots. Cassava has a high content of fermentable substances. This makes it appropriate for the production of alcohol. The fresh tubers contain about 30 % starch and 5 % sugars, and the dried tubers contain approximately 80 % fermentable substances( which are equivalent to rice as a source of alcohol).
STARTING UP A CASSAVA FARM
A QUESTION AND ANSWERS IN DETAIL FOR AN INITIAL PREPARATION FOR CASSAVA
FARMING( What To Look Out For)
Cassava is one of the most common food crops grown and consumed in many parts of Africa. The crop grows well in various soil types and ecologies. It can be planted alone or in association with many other crops, like maize, groundnuts, vegetables, and rice. Growing cassava is not very labor intensive and usually requires 75 – 125 person-days per hectare from land preparation to harvesting. The storage roots can be harvested 9 – 18 months after planting. Under traditional farming practices, one can expect between 8 and 15 tonnes of storage roots per hectare of land planted only with cassava. Even under harsh environmental conditions cassava will provide some food when other crops fail. In most places there is a good market for cassava. The storage roots can be processed into various food products and starch for domestic consumption, local, and / or export markets. Cassava leaves are nutritious vegetables. The leaves and storage roots can also be used as animal feed. The stems can be sold as planting material.
HOW DO I SELECT A GOOD SITE FOR PLANTING CASSAVA?
Cassava grows best in areas with deep and well-drained loamy soils, adequate rainfall, and warm and moist climatic conditions. The factors which guide you to determine if an area will be suitable for growing cassava include vegetation cover, soil texture and fertility, topography of land, and the field history of the area.
1. Look for an area with thick vegetation cover: Sites with dense vegetation cover are likely to have fertile soils. The dense vegetation shades the soil from direct sunlight, reduces the amount of moisture that is lost from the soil through evaporation, and minimizes run-off water which may otherwise cause soil erosion. The dense vegetation also drops a lot of leaves which rot and add nutrients to the soil. In addition, decaying leaves encourage an increase in the number of earthworms and other small invertebrates in the soil, which in turn help to increase the air in the soil and make it better for growing cassava.
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