The Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has sealed four fake fertiliser blending plants operating without a licence in Kano.

The director of the Fertiliser Control Office of the Farm Inputs Support Department of the Ministry, Kwaido Sani, disclosed this on Friday in a statement.

Mr Sani said the federal government task force discovered that the plants were blending without authorisation and mixing substandard components to produce adulterated fertiliser sold to farmers.

He explained that the inspection of the plants was necessary to rid Nigerian markets of adulterated fertilisers and ensure that no firm produced fertiliser without government approval.

According to him, the National Fertilizer Quality Control Act 2019 and Regulations 2020 will ensure that any individual doing business must register with the Farm Inputs Support Department and must possess the requisite facilities to operate in the sector.

“This is a market operation. We are not interested in arresting anybody. Our interest is to make people comply with the provisions of this act,” he added. “Fertiliser is a very critical input in farm production, and the federal government will not tolerate any act of sabotage in ensuring food security in the country.”

According to him, a truckload of adulterated fertiliser had been confiscated as evidence while the defaulting shops were sealed.

“We have also found a huge cache of fertiliser blending raw materials, which are not supposed to be sold in the market,” he said.

He said the defaulting marketers arrested in possession of illegal blending raw materials would be prosecuted after investigation.

The sealed plants were Albarka Agro-Allied and Chemical Fertiliser, Nagarta Agro Fertiliser, both in the Zara community of Kumbotso local government, Samu Alheri plant in Jido community of Dawakin Kudu local government and a retail shop in Getso market of Gwarzo local government area.

The secretary of the Fertilizer Producers and Suppliers Association of Nigeria (FEPSAN), Gideon Negedu, commended the task force, saying the process would help eradicate the substandard and adulterated fertilisers from the Nigerian agro-allied sector.

(NAN)