The Importance Of Cowpea In Africa

Cowpea is an economically important legume crop in Africa (Langyintuo et al., 2003). A vast proportion of the population derives food, animal feed, alongside cash income (Langyintuo et al., 2003; Asare, 2013) from the crop. There is a big market for the sale of cowpea grain and fodder in West and Central Africa. In Nigeria, farmers who cut and store cowpea fodder for sale at the peak of the dry season have been found to increase their annual income by 25% (Dugje et al., 2009). Trading in freshly produced seeds and processed food and snacks provide farmers, rural and urban women with the opportunity for earning cash income (Singh et al., 2002; Singh, 2002; Langyintuo et al., 2003). Cowpea farmers provide fodder for in situ grazing after harvesting

Information on cowpea marketing and trade is lacking and data on cowpea production economics scattered because marketing research has focused on export crops such as cocoa, coffee, cotton, groundnut and to a lesser extent cereals (Van der Laan cited by Langyintou, et al., 2003).

2.4.1 Food and health benefits

Cowpea can be used at all stages of growth hence serves as an important source of food in Africa, Asia, Southern Europe, Central and South America (Nielson et al., 1993; Singh et al., 1997; Ahenkora et al., 1998). It is a source of vegetable protein and minerals for about 70% of Ghana’s population and the second most important grain legume, and currently a food security crop (MoFA, 2010). The mature dried seeds, immature seeds and pods and young leaves of cowpea constitute food for human consumption in Africa (Asare,

The grain contains about 25% protein and 64% carbohydrate (Bressani, 1985) and therefore has a tremendous potential to contribute to the alleviation of malnutrition among resource-poor farmers. Since the bulk of the diet of rural and urban poor Africa consists of starchy food made from cassava, yam, plantain, and banana, millet, sorghum and maize; the high protein content of cowpea (20-25%) (Alayande et al. 2012) compensates for the large proportion of the carbohydrate in the diet (Lambot, 2002). Cowpea utilization is critical in many parts of West and Central Africa as a cheap source of protein for those who cannot afford meat or fish (IITA, 2006) and as a “food security crop” (Lambot, 2002) for populations that consume cowpea as traditional staple food (Langyintuo et al.,