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World Food Day: HOMEF urges Nigeria to prioritise indigenous seeds, agroecology for food security – EnviroNews
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The Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) has called on the Nigerian government to prioritise indigenous seeds, agroecology and local food systems as strategies for tackling hunger, malnutrition and climate change.
The organisation made the call on Friday, October 16, 2026, to mark World Food Day, warning that industrial agriculture, restrictive seed policies and the neglect of smallholder farmers were undermining food sovereignty and sustainable food production.
In a statement, HOMEF stressed the need for governments and other stakeholders to address the root causes of hunger, promote food justice and protect farmers’ rights to save, exchange and replant indigenous seeds.
The organisation noted that millions of people, particularly in Africa, continued to experience hunger despite the continent’s abundant natural and human resources.
It attributed the persistent food crisis to several interconnected factors, including climate change, economic instability, conflict and weaknesses in food production and distribution systems.
According to HOMEF, food should not be regarded merely as a commodity for profit but as a fundamental human right closely linked to public health, cultural identity, farmers’ livelihoods and environmental sustainability.
Speaking on climate resilience and soil health, HOMEF Executive Director, Nnimmo Bassey, described World Food Day as an opportunity for reflection and a reassessment of existing agricultural systems.
“World Food Day should be a day of reflection. It must also be a day of structural reckoning. We are currently trapped in a food system defined by ‘monoculture and cash cropping,’ where diversity is sacrificed for industrial uniformity,” Bassey said.
He warned that the approach had made food supply chains more vulnerable to disruptions while undermining soil health and farmers’ control over agricultural production.
Bassey urged Nigerians to pay greater attention to the origins and quality of their food, arguing that food sovereignty was essential to addressing the interconnected food and climate crises.
He described indigenous seeds as important repositories of genetic diversity, with the potential to support drought resistance, pest management and improved nutritional quality under changing climatic conditions.
The HOMEF director called for a transition towards agroecology, which promotes ecologically sustainable farming practices and the conservation of biodiversity.
“Protecting indigenous seeds is not just about local control; it is about preserving the biodiversity that prevents ecosystem collapse,” he said.
Bassey maintained that agricultural policies should move beyond the pursuit of higher yields at any cost and instead support farming systems that protect the environment, improve nutrition and strengthen local communities.
Also speaking, HOMEF Director of Programmes, Joyce Brown, said persistent hunger in a resource-rich continent reflected underlying political and economic choices that disadvantaged small-scale food producers.
She argued that food sovereignty required a shift in power relations within food systems, enabling local farmers and communities to influence decisions about what they grow, how they produce it and how food is distributed.
Brown called on governments and international institutions to review policies that favour industrial exporters over small-scale producers supplying local communities.
She also raised concerns about the implications of Nigeria’s Plant Variety Protection Act, 2021, for farmers’ rights and access to indigenous seeds.
According to her, restricting farmers’ ability to save and reuse seeds could undermine traditional diets, nutritional security and the livelihoods of vulnerable farming communities.
“Preserving indigenous seeds is a public health imperative because these varieties are inextricably linked to the traditional diets that have sustained human health for years,” Brown said.
She urged policymakers to ensure that the right to adequate food included the protection of local communities’ authority over their agricultural resources and food production systems.
Meanwhile, Mariann Bassey-Olsson, Deputy Director of Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN), described seed-saving as an important act of resistance, cultural preservation and agricultural independence.
She rejected the argument that industrial agriculture was the only viable means of feeding the world’s population, noting that smallholder farmers had sustained communities for generations.
According to her, saving and exchanging indigenous seeds enables farmers to preserve traditional knowledge, strengthen cooperation and reduce dependence on external seed suppliers.
“These seeds are not ‘intellectual property’ to be manipulated and sold by foreign corporations. They are a sacred legacy. The result of centuries of adaptation, trial, and resilience by our ancestors,” Bassey-Olsson said.
She added that indigenous seed varieties were adapted to local environmental conditions and formed an important part of the cultural identity and agricultural heritage of communities.
Bassey-Olsson maintained that farmers’ freedom to save, exchange and replant seeds was fundamental to food sovereignty, warning that losing control over seeds could weaken their autonomy.
The organisation also called for a rejection of what it described as false solutions to the food crisis, including genetically modified crops, arguing that such approaches could undermine farmers’ seed rights, threaten biodiversity and increase dependence on foreign corporations.
HOMEF instead advocated investment in diverse local food systems, improved access to agricultural knowledge and resources for smallholder farmers, and regenerative farming practices that protect soil health and ecosystems.
It stressed that future food systems should prioritise nutritious food, environmental sustainability and improved livelihoods rather than production volumes alone.
World Food Day is observed annually on October 16 to raise awareness of hunger and food security challenges and promote efforts to ensure access to safe, nutritious and affordable food for all.
With this year’s theme identified in the statement as “Innovate Today” and “Nourish Tomorrow”, HOMEF urged governments, organisations and individuals to support locally driven agricultural solutions capable of withstanding climate pressures and socioeconomic disruptions.
The organisation said achieving sustainable food security would require empowering smallholder farmers, protecting indigenous knowledge and seeds, and expanding agroecological practices that support both human wellbeing and environmental health. It maintained that placing farmers’ rights, biodiversity and food sovereignty at the centre of agricultural policy was essential to building resilient food systems and securing a healthier future for generations to come.
