Hassan Gbadebo Adewusi 141
particularly co-operative ones, there is high optimism for widespread
participation among all the stakeholders in D. edulis production, if such
organisation were to exist. The non-existence of a formal producing organisation
makes it difficult to establish guidelines for entrance of new members. The
land tenure system could be one of the major constraints to recruiting new
members into the production system; similarly, the capital outlay of produce
buying may restrict new entrants into the distribution system as well as
diversified business of stakeholders.Processing industry
The current degree of transformation of D. edulis to finished product is low, i.
e., the fruit is eaten without any value added. However, when extractives (oil,
resin etc.) are obtained, the transformation may be high. The proportion of
farm produce to finished product currently remains total (100%). Other species
with value similar to D. edulis are D. klaineana and Canarium schweinfurthii.
However, no synthetic substitute is known at present. Experience with other
fruit trees showed that vendors employ labour to harvest at peak periods, similar
method are not known to be employed for D. edulis. Current knowledge only
indicates the use of family labour in the sequential harvest, and this is not often
costed. At present, little or no technology is used in the processing of D. edulis.
The technologies being developed and used in studying the potential industrial
uses of natural products at the Products Research and Development Agency
(PRODA) in Enugu, Nigeria, the Federal Institute for Industrial Research Oshodi
(FIIRO) in Lagos, Nigeria, and the Food Technology and Food Sciences Departments
in Nigerian Universities and Polytechnics should be adopted and improved upon.Trade and marketing
The trade of D. edulis in Nigeria can be described as ‘cash and carry’. Daily
paid workers within the National Agricultural Research System currently earn
US$2.5 per day (N100 = US$1 at the official rate of exchange). However, at
Sakpoba—an oil producing area—the average daily wage range is between
US$4 and US$5 depending on the nature of a job and labour availability. The
farmers in addition provide transportation and a mid-day meal. Labour charges
are higher in the oil producing areas of the Niger Delta.
An annual yield of 1,500 to 10,000 fruits per mature tree, with a
corresponding cash income of about US$75 to US$150 has been recorded for D.
edulis (Okafor 1990). In the same area (the Niger Delta), an economic evaluation
by Aiyelaagbe et al. (1998) reported an annual yield of 8 kg to 110 kg per tree,
depending on tree age. This represented an average cash income of about
US$0.03 to US$0.75 with a yield of 20 kg to 50 kg per tree (Aiyelaagbe et al.
1998). The price in local currency of D. edulis continues to increase steadily,
particularly in the off-seasons and years of poor production. However, the
differences in the above economic evaluations stem from variations in
assessment period and rate as well as rate of inflation. The income accruing
to the household from the trade may continue to increase, but inflation and
declining value of the national currency continue to obscure this trend.08dacryodes.p65 141 22/12/2004, 11:05