Survey of Fura production in some northern states of Nigeria

Abstract

The objective of this research was to conduct a survey related to the production process for fura. Fura is a staple food for the Fulanis and Hausas. The single most important cereal grain for fura production is millet. A significant difference exists among respondents on the variety of millet chosen for fura production. A significantly (p = 0.05) greater proportion indicated that ‘gero’ is the variety in common use. Spices are indispensable as an ingredient in fura production with ginger being the single most important spice (p = 0.01). The traditional pounding method for processing millet into flour is still very much used. The implication of this is highlighted and a possible solution of optimizing the fura production process is recommended. Strictly speaking, fura is distributed with a minimum of packaging. The choice of suitable packaging provided protection during a generally short shelf-life and for local distribution. With increasing influence of advertising upon customers, small food processing enterprises making fura will have to improve the packaging and preservation of their products if they are to survive the competition.