As inconsequential as the grass cutter aspect of farming may appear to many Nigerian farmers, not only would venturing into the business rapidly bring millions of Naira at the beck and call of the ordinary farmer but would positively boost the agricultural sector as well as the country’s economy, a grass cutter farmer, Prince Arinze Onebunne, explains the procedure involved in the business chains in this interview with Mohammed Kandi. Excerpts:
What prompted you to start grass cutter farming?
As it is with many other investors when they discover a new business, my first attempt in grass cutter farming was filled with challenges. But, I received a lot of advice from many people around me then, some encouraging; some discouraging me, saying livestock farming was full of risks. Some advised me to go into importation business instead but I remained focused because I wanted to create a job for myself and for other people. Let me say this, if you want to succeed, go for a new business rather than travel the worn path of accepted success, explore uncharted courses.
A childhood experience fired up my interest in grass cutter farming. When we were growing up in the village, we used to go into the forest to set the bush on fire as a way of hunting for grass cutter. One day, after killing so many, we found a pregnant grass cutter that could not run and we took it home. We did not tell our parents and we decided to put it in the goats’ pen. The next morning when we woke up, we found out that it had delivered about eight litters. We later lost the mother due to injuries it sustained during the bush fire but the litters were very smart, eating corn, cassava, vegetable and rice. That was how I picked the interest in grass cutter farming and I was about 14 years old then. So, when I decided to go into it, it was like confirming what was to be, and no one would tell me it cannot have up to eight litters because I witnessed it as a child.
When did you begin to see grass cutter farming as business?
I started by getting my breeding stock from Gabon through a friend, who lives in that country. Initially, I was doing it as a hobby and before long; the whole place was filled with grass cutters. We kept them in a wooden cage. That is why I tell people that you need very little capital to start the business. You can build a cage with about N7, 000 and any roadside carpenter can do it. The breeding stock of one male and four females is sold for N45, 000 even though you can get the local breed for N35, 000. The cross-breed is N45, 000 and the cost depends on the age, weight and species.
The early days were quite challenging and interesting because what I am giving my glass cutter today is not what I gave them when I started 15 years ago. I have done a lot of research and gained experience over the years. Then I was giving them only grass and their performance were not good enough. Later, I started adding supplements. Today, they are breeding very well.
In those early days, because of lack of knowledge, the animals were dying. For instance, we were going in the mornings to cut the grass for their feeding but we did not know that it was dangerous because some insects like caterpillar and moth that stick on the grass are harmful to the glass cutter. If you go in the morning to cut grass for them, you may end up giving them poison and that was what we were doing and the animals were dying. So, we later found out that the best time to cut grass for them was from 2p.m. because by then, the sun would have drove the insects away.
How much does a novice need to start and what are the prospects in this system of farming?
The business is not capital intensive, with as little as N52, 000; one can conveniently start the business but let me warn here that you also need to go for training. It is very important. Because I had no prior knowledge of the business I was doing trial and error, which made me to do a lot of research so as to get it right. Now, I know the nitty-gritty of the business and every information that can guide a new comer is readily available. What I mean is that I know grass cutter “inside-out” now.
As for the prospect in the business, it is very profitable business with high returns on the investment. It is the only livestock farming where you won’t need to spend much on feed. If you are talking about pig farming, you must buy food for pigs, if it is fish, rabbit, poultry it is the same thing, but for grass cutter farming, if you are not lazy and proud, the only thing you need to do is to buy cutlass and rain boots and now look for the elephant grass to cut for them. Anywhere you go to get this, it is free.
Apart from grass, they also eat cassava and we know that cassava is the cheapest carbohydrate you can think of. There are supplements we give them too like Palm Kernel Cake (PKC), calcium from crushed animal bones. Toasted soya beans mixed with cassava is a good source of protein. These supplements would give them rapid growth and help them to produce large number of litters. Feeding them is not a problem as the animals are fed twice a day – morning and evening. That is why I tell people that grass cutter farming is interesting and convenient. You can do it even while in full employment. It can be done on part-time basis even as you combine it with other businesses. So, I am calling on civil servants and others to embrace this method of farming to boost their incomes.
Grasscutter farming is the cheapest livestock business one can go into because you can start it with as little as N52, 000, you do not need to buy land or build a new structure. You can put the cage in any available space in your house. It could be your corridor, kitchen, garage, under the staircase or in your backyard. You can start with a breeding family, which is made up of one male and four females and in the next eight months, you will have about 32 litters from the four females. Grass cutter can reproduce twice in a year.
I am appealing to Nigerians to embrace this business because it can help create jobs and alleviate poverty. Our young graduates want to work in oil companies and banks, nobody wants to go into farming, and they all want white collar jobs. What they do not know is that they can discover gold in grass cutter farming because the profit margin is about 500 per cent. One breeding family will give you 256 litters in four years which is their breeding circle and one female grass cutter will give you 64 litters in four years. You can stock the litters to grow for the table or you sell them. You can make up to N340, 000 from one female grass cutter and when she has completed the breeding circle, you can sell it as bush meat. After eight months, you can start making profit. You buy the breeding stock at four months and when they grow to eight months, they start producing litters. If you do not have a place to expand, you can sell the litters. They can carry their babies up to five months.
How and where does a farmer carry out the marketing of animals, considering the fact that there beef, chicken and fish are more visible and probably affordable than the grass cutter meat?
Grass cutter meat is a delicacy; it is like hot cake in many restaurants, and the easiest meat to market is grass cutter. Go to any big restaurant, if they do not have grass cutter meat in their menu, it means they do not know where to get it. Even if you produce 10 container-loads of grass cutter meat in Lagos, you will find market for them. The meat is delicious and filled with health benefits. Even doctors advise patients to eat it because it is white meat; it is not like cow meat, which is red meat and has low cholesterol. You cannot compare it with any other type of meat because it is very delicious. It is even more delicious than snail meat, so the market is there. Grass cutter meat is very easy to sell anywhere in the country.
The last time I was in Calabar for my nationwide sensitization seminar-project, I almost wept because elephant grass was everywhere and the people did not know what to do with it. When my participants came, I told them not to wait for government for employment, that they should start raising grass cutter to make good money. Anybody who has failed in any other livestock farming business cannot fail with grass cutter business because it is very convenient, cheap and easy to do. There is no financial stress; you do not borrow money to buy the feed.
How can grass cutter farming be used to alleviation poverty and create jobs for Nigerians?
Government is supposed to create the enabling environment and capacity for the business to thrive. I discovered that the government is only paying lip service concerning the youth empowerment programmes. In some states, what the governors do as a way of alleviating poverty is to buy motorcycle, wheel-barrow, truck and tri-cycle for people.
Meanwhile, the roads are filled with able-bodied young men, who should be engaged in farming. It is in a bid to empower our youths that I embarked on a nation- wide sensitization campaign in agriculture to create awareness on how grass cutter farming can curb unemployment and alleviate poverty. Today, we hold seminars in almost 30 states capitals in Nigeria.
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