ARTICLE EIGHT.
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The Citrus Family.

In Lagos Metropolitan Area markets, the appearance of the citrus family- consisting of sweet orange ( scientific name : citrus sinensis ), sour orange ( citrus aurantium ), lime ( citrus aurantifolia), grape-fruit ( citrus paradisi ), lemon ( citrus limon ), tangerine ( citrus reticulata ), pomelo (citrus grandis ) and tangelo ( which is a hybrid between tangerine and pamelo ), is seasonal. When in season, the fruits come in diverse colours and sizes. In our markets, their colours range from green to a group of colours that lie midway between red and yellow.
In this part of the world, the cultivation, harvesting and storage of citrus fruits is laborious. Oranges and other members of the citrus family have peculiar climatic and soil requirements, as well as unique planting and propagation methods. Indeed, after planting, their maturity and harvesting occur between three and seven years. Rain and other climatic vagaries also play a role on the bumperness or otherwise of citrus harvests.
The first members of the citrus family that usually appear earlier than others in Lagos markets the lime, sour orange and tangerine.Their initial quantities in the market are small; they cost high and are not very juicy or succulent yet. Since harvesting is done by hand or harvesting knife, the arrival of citrus fruits into the markets is gradual at the initial stages of harvesting. This is usually between the months of July and September. In the meantime, sweet oranges are imported from neighbouring countries of West Africa to augment our shortfall. People patronize them in spite of their high cost because they are sweet, succulent,fleshy, and juicy.
When Nigerian oranges, grape-fruits and other citrus – family eventually arrive, Lagos area markets are agog with them, and the populace consume them with relish. Nature is so kind that the full-blown harvesting of citrus co-incides with the dry season,and at this period the have a sweet and pleasing taste, in addition to being good thirst-quenchers!
Virtually all the members of the citrus family in our markets are of immense benefits to the populace. For example, lemon ( citrus limon ) has a lot of nutritional as well as medicinal benefits. The lemon leaf is rich in aromatic essence-( limonene and linadol ). It also serves as a good sedative, giving no side effects. Lemon juice is rich in vitamins B1, B2, and C as well as flavonoids and organic acids. Lemon juice is also reputed to be a good remedy for scurvy, a disease caused by lack of Vitamin C. Sweet orange ( citrus sinensis ) is also rich in vitamins and minerals.

Nowadays, there has been tremendous progress in the processing of citrus fruits. We have modern, fair-sized factories that process oranges into canned orange-juices. Some are also processed as bottled orange-juices. These canned and bottled products sell very well in Lagos markets and shops, and they are in high demand at social functions, picnics and get-to –gethers. Thus, the citrus family serve as industrial raw materials to some of our factories in Lagos State.

It is pertinent to mention that the sale of citrus on wholesale in Lagos Area is carried out on many sub-urban locations,namely, the “ Agege Market ,’’ the “ Ketu Market,’’ and the “ Okokomaiko Market,’’ just to mention a few. Lorries and trailers bring them from the hinterland into Lagos. Because they are perishable items, whole-sale merchants sell them quickly to buyers who then transport them to neighbourhood urban markets for retail trading.


PHOTOGRAPH : Diverse members of the citrus family on sale at Lagos Markets.

ARTICLE SEVEN :

B E A N S.

Bean [related to the cowpea ] is the seed of any of various erect or climbing leguminous plants. Matured beans are eaten by the populace because of its richness in protein. When immature, a bean pod is used as a vegetable.
Beans in Lagos markets come in different colours and shapes. We have beans in brown, light brown, white and coffee-brown colours. The sizes of coffee-brown beans are much smaller than the others. But there is demand for all of them.
Beans are found in Lagos Area Markets all-year round. Beans are planted in all parts of the country. Beans can be planted either manually (i.e. by traditional farming methods ) or mechanically on a large scale. Early planting occurs in April and late planting takes place in August and September in the south; while in the northern part of the country, planting occurs in July and August of each year. Matured beans are harvested three to four months after planting.
Years ago, beans are harvested traditionally and manually on a small scale . But nowadays, upsurge in population means many mouths to feed. Therefore, there is now a corresponding change in farming methods. Shellers are used on a large scale. There are now very large, mechanized and modern farms in the northern part of the country that produce very large quantities of beans. Storage of processed beans is now done in silos on a very large scale. Also, hermatic storage is done in air-tight containers. The beans are then transported to Lagos in jute bags, via long-haulage trailers.
The demand for beans in Lagos area is insatiable. This proteinaceous food item is usually eaten in various cooked forms.When cooked, it can be eaten with bread or rice , yam ,
Soup or cooked with corn. It is extremely popular with blue-collar workers and students.
Market-places in Lagos sell beans both whole-sale and retail. The traditional entry-point of the item into Lagos, i.e. the popular “ Mile 12 Market” , also sells beans on wholesale and retail basis.
There are traditional and beliefs embedded in beans-eating in south-west Nigeria (including Lagos State). The birth of twin – children is traditionally celebrated with cooking and eating of beans. Families into which twins are born periodically cook and eat,as well as share cooked beans with others- neighbours, extended families and friends.
At social functions, rice-based foods are usually complemented by a special delicacy called “moin-moin”. This special delicacy is made of 95% bean content. We also have fried bean-balls,used to complement “ogi” , the local custard drink. It is also eaten with bread.
On a smaller scale, soya-beans are also available in Lagos Area markets.Soya beans are usually used as supplements to infant-foods. Soyabeans are reputed to be very nutritious and extremely rich in proteins. However, soyabeans are not very popular on the people’s food tables because of its reputation of being very tough to cook!


*Photographs above are of beans and some other grains on retail markets in Lagos area.

AGRIC. PRODUCTS IN LAGOS MARKETS.

By S. OLANREWAJU DISU.


ARTICLE SIX.



C O R N

When in season,corn is found in every market, big or small, all over Lagos Metropolitan Area. The scientific name for corn [ or maize] is “ zea mays “. It is a cereal crop and is a member of the grass family.

In southern Nigeria, corn has two main planting periods—early corn being planted between March and April, i.e. at the on-set of the early rainy season; while late corn[ or maize ] is planted between July and August, to co-incide with the late rainy season. Corn can also be planted in other parts of Nigeria where irrigation is available. But the plantation of rain-fed corn produces delicious and sturdy products.

After planting, corn planted early in the year usually takes two to three months to mature while corn planted late in the year takes three to four months to mature.

Very large quantities of corn are harvested green. These are immediately transported to large whole-sale markets in the Lagos Metropolis. To mention a few,we have the popular “Mile 12 Market”, the “Agege Market”, the “Okokomaiko Market”and the “Iyana-Iba Market”. Market women flood these markets from dawn to evening , buying freshly-harvested corn from both the hinterland and near-by farms. Ad-hoc corn sellers emerge every year during this harvest period. Transporters make brisk business during this period, too. Small, medium-size and large trucks are deployed in large numbers to evacuate corn from the entire southern states of Nigeria to Lagos State to feed a densely populated people who love eating corn in various forms. Corn is tasty and has a lot of nutritional value.

In addition to being eaten either boiled or roasted, corn is processed into corn flour , corn-flakes and livestock feeds. These processed corn products are sold in different urban markets— e.g. “ Oke- Arin Market “ and “ Daleko Market “, either on wholesale or retail basis.

In Lagos markets, we have both the yellow and white corn. Each variety is equally acceptable to the people because each serves a cultural need. For example, the white variety is used for special diets, namely, “ogi” – the local custard drink, “tuo”--- similar to mashed potatoes, and “adalu”—i.e. combination of two grains—corn and beans cooked together. Similarly, the yellow variety is used as above except for “tuo’’ and “eko”—which are usually made with white corn by some ethnic people in the populace. Both yellow and white corn are also used in feeding domestic poultry – a popular pastime among the middle-aged and retirees.

After harvesting fresh corn, a substantial quantity are left and harvested dry. These dried varieties are available in our markets all-year round. They also come as yellow-maize or white-maize. These dried corns serve the populace before the arrival of another planting season and harvest. There are livestock feed-mills in Lagos area, the largest of which is located at the Ikeja Industrial Estate. Therefore, corn is a very important agricultural product in Lagos State.

THE PHOTOGRAPHS ACCOMPANYING THIS ARTCLE SHOW SOME OF THE MANY FORMS IN WHICH CORN IS SOLD IN LAGOS MARKETS.

ARTICLE FIVE.
O N I O N.
A prominent agricultural product to be found in Lagos Metropolitan Area markets is the onion. Historically, the onion ( Allium cepa ) is a herb of Asiatic origins. It is of the lily family with pungent edible bulbs. The onion has a stinging or biting quality of odours, causing a sharp or irritating sensation.
Onion is widely cultivated in the northern part of Nigeria. Like most crops in our markets, it has a season when it is in abundance, as is the case since about five or more weeks ago. Onions are everywhere at affordable prices.
The climatic condition in the northern part of Nigeria,coupled with very large agricultural land- mass and heavily mechanized land cultivation make growing of onions a very profitable business. On top of this bliss, there is a ready market for onions in Lagos.
The point of entry for onions into Lagos is the famous “ Mile 12 Market “ _ which is located at Ikosi-Isheri Local Government Area, along the Ikorodu Express Road in Lagos State. At regular intervals, long-haulage trailers bring in large quantities of freshly –harvested onions into the ‘’Mile 12 Market”. Needless to stress, this market is a bee-hive of activities__wholesale agric merchants, whole-sale buyers, permanent and casual labourers who engage in off-loading neatly packed sacks of onions from trailers, as well as hordes of market women who come in to buy and resell in neighbourhood markets on retail basis.
Virtually all the onions consumed in Lagos Area are grown in the northern part of Nigeria. Before the establishment of the ‘’Mile 12 Market’’, people usually purchase onions wholesale from the ‘’Iddo Market’’,which is located near the Nigerian Railways Terminus. In those days before the discovery of oil, farm-produce from the north were brought into Lagos by rail.There were few trailers and very few highways. The ‘’Iddo Market’’ logically grew up near the railway terminus. But time changes everything! Lagos simply grew to become a large cosmopolitan area and ‘’Iddo Market’’ alone cannot serve the populace; hence the emergence of the ‘’Mile 12 Market”, located several kilometers north of the ‘’Iddo Market’’. Onions and other farm products, especially from the north, e.g. groundnuts [ pea-nuts ] are still available at the Iddo – Market.
When onions are not in season and the prices are high, consumers literally pay through the nose to purchase them. This is so because in this part of the world, onions have no alternative crops to replace them in cooking. When not in season, it is funny to observe onions in ridiculously small sizes that still sell like hot cakes!

AGRIC PRODUCTS IN LAGOS MARKETS.

BY S.Olanrewaju Disu.
Artcle Four;

Yam.
Yam is a crop that produces tuber under the ground and provides carbohydrates,to humans when eaten.yam is the ediblestarch tuberons roots of various plants [genus dioscorea of the family dioscoreaceae] commonly used as a staple food in tropical areas.In the Lagos Metropolitan area,yam is widely used as a staple food by the huge populance.some merchants trade year-round in yams and yam-products.eg yam-flour.
There are two distinct planting dates for yam production.therefore,there are periods when yams are in large supply and sell cheaply.also,there are periods when yams are in short supply with consequential high price.

Early yam is planted between November and December, while late yam is planted between March and April.Yam matures in 8-12 months after planting.therefore,near yam appears in the market from the months of July and August.in the southern parts of Nigeria,yam is planted between November and December each year .hence.new yam appears first in the southern state long before the advent of new yams from the northern parts.Geographically, however ,the northern parts of the country has much more vast quantity of arable land for yam-farming on a very large scale.Hence late yams planted in the north can not be totally exhausted before the advent of new yams in the south to shore up supplies.

Altogether there are about five varieties of yam to be found in Lagos area markets, namely white yam [dioscorea routundata];water yam [dioscorea alata];aerial yam [dioscorea bulbifera];yellow yam [dioscorea cayenesis] as well as bitter yam [dioscorea domentorum].
The most popular varieties are the white yam and the water yam.the white yam [dioscorea rotundata] is by far the most popular and the most widespread in Lagos markets.this is chiefly because it is put into various uses by all and Sundry.we can mention six right-away ;
i. “Boiled-yam” which can be eaten with cooked beans and soups or with palm oil or scambled eggs ;
ii. “Pounded –yam” which is boiled-yam moulded in large,wooden mortar and pestle “ pounded yam” is eaten with vegetable soup and meat or fish;
iii. “Dundun” which is fried yam;
iv. “smoked-yam,” which is eaten with palm-oil or oily soup;
v. “Porridge”which is the delicacy of the elite and ;
vi. “yam-flour,”usually converted into “amala”.which is very popular among the inhabitants of Nigeria’s south-west.”amala” is eaten with vegetable soup .

Right now,new yam tubers are gradually flooding the markets in lagos metropolis. The prices are falling and everybody is buying and eating yam.