The production department comprises of six sections which are: Veterinary, Production office, Agriculture, Entomology, Fisheries and Marketing. This section presents statistics on the main crops, birds and animals that are reared in the district and how they are marketed. Crops: The District is a predominantly an Agricultural one, with over 85% of the population engaged in subsistence Agriculture according to the 2002 Population and Housing Census. It has 1 district agricultural officer, 7 agricultural officers, 22 assistant agricultural officers and 4 support staff. With a population of an estimated 468,700 people and 7264 farm families there is a strain on the available thin Agriculture extension staff as each officer serves an average of 214 households. The district has a total of 257 farmer groups with more female membership than the male counter parts. Through these farmer groups, farmers can access easily credit facilities, extension services and voice out their problems collectively. On average extension staffs have 4 visits to farmers/ farm groups in a month.
These visits should be increase d to improve on farmers activities and ensure proper production channels. Also the number of extension staff should be increased to ease on their work. In the district, the NAADS project operates in 11 sub counties. It has 669 farmer groups having a total number of 12388 beneficiaries. A technology in agriculture is a new innovation a project or individual is undertaking. There are 3 technologies per subcounty and a total number of 33 technologies in the district. The district has 53 technology development sites, 3 enterprises and about 33 service providers. The major crops grown in the district Include: Cassava, finger millet, sorghum, maize, groundnuts, cowpeas, beans, sweet potatoes, bananas, rice, (low land and some upland), green grams, soybeans, sunflower, vegetables (tomatoes, cabbages, egg plants), fruits (mangoes, citrus, pineapples, avocadoes, pawpaw, among others. Cassava is the most common crop grown followed by rice. However, the district also grows cotton, as a major cash crop. The growth of these crops is affected by a number of factors ranging from natural factors to the man made factors. Natural factors like poor climate, long drought spells, crop pests and diseases among others are faced by the farmers.
