The increase in global demand for sesame seed as a health food has turned the highly domestic consumption item into an important export commodity. This has opened a vista of opportunities for Nigerians to earn good income from cultivation and exportation of the seed, DANIEL ESSIET reports.
Sesame seeds are a money spinner worldwide. They are processed and used in numerous ways. In most areas of the world, the seeds are produced for cooking oil, used as confectionary topping and as condiments in baked products. They impart unique taste and textural features when included in baked products. Sesame is rich in calcium and high in antioxidants and other healthful features. Due to the presence of potent antioxidant, sesame seeds are known as “the seed of immortality”. Sesame oil is also used as conveyor for medical injections, just as it is essential in the cosmetics industry. Many cosmetics compositions include sesame oil because of its antioxidant properties.
Many international food and cosmetics companies buy sesame seeds from Nigeria and other countries, thus making many exporters of the product earn hard currency smile to the banks.
The largest importers of the product are the European Union (EU), Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirate(UAE), Kuwait , India, China and Pacific Rim countries, United States and Canada . Described as a short duration crop grown throughout the year, sesame seed has a low water requirement.
The National President, National Sesame Seed Association of Nigeria (NSAAN), Mr. Sherrif Balogun, said sesame seeds farming provides opportunity for new entrants, who cannot afford enough money to explore before going into export proper. This is because with a little investment as low as N81, 000, a farmer can start growing the crop on a small scale.
Out of this, N16, 500 will go for land preparation, N20, 400 for imputs, N22,000 for field operations and N15,000 for harvest operation. All things being equal, he said, a profit margin of N80,000 can be realised from the N160, 000 invested.
According to Balogun, an enabling environment has been provided, which include land, sufficient rain and the incentives offered by higher global market prices.
But exporting requires more money. One needs at least N15 million for a container load of sesame seeds . Profit varies, between three and 10 percent of the invested capital .
To meet the demands of international buyers, however, he said sesame seeds need to meet demand purity and consumer safety standards.
To achieve this, exporters have to work with farmers with proven track records of producing commodities for export.
Besides, prospective exporters have to be educated in safety management processes for minimising fungus and aflatoxin levels, and be educated about the importance of complying with sanitary and phytosanitary measures (SPS).
Buyers and processors are expected to have their samples certified by Nigeria’s regulatory body, the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), and by internationally accredited laboratories to meet the sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures required for exporting.
Right now, the Nigerian Export Promotion Council(NEPC) has identified sesame seed, as a product that would penetrate new international markets and increase foreign exchange earnings if able to meet European and US health and safety standards.
NSAAN is ready to work with NEPC to build the capacity of small and medium-size enterprises to implement SPS standards, guidelines and recommendations as means to improve their human, animal and plant health status and ability to gain or maintain access to markets.
Balogun advised farmers and exporters to store the seeds in clean, dry and moisture proof area, free from insects, pests and rodents. Prospective exporters need documents such as invoice, certificate of origin, shipping bill, bill of laden, letter of credit, phytosanitary certificate, GLOBALGAP certification, health certificate and organic certification. Exporters prefer organic sesame from farmers for export to buyers overseas. To them, it is very profitable if the local sesame crop meets organic and other high-quality standards.
However, according to Balogun, the price of sesame seeds varies according to variety, month of procurement, season to season, capacity of container and distance covered.
Exporters can source the commodity from states such as Benue, Gombe, Jigawa, Kano, Nasarawa, Katsina, Plateau, Yobe and Cross River.
Between 2011 and 2012, Nigerian farmers cultivated 92.3 million and 96.2 million hectares of land to produce 179.6 thousand and 188.9 thousand tonnes of sesame seeds, respectively.
On the average, exporters realised N43.7 million by selling them overseas during the fourth quarter of 2013. Hence, it was the fourth most important non-oil export items in that quarter.
NSAAN works with a network of local trainers to share information with the farmers on how to prepare the soil, space their plantings, and harvest and handle the produce. Improved seeds are guaranteed to produce higher yields, be more drought resistant, and have shorter maturity cycles. Under normal circumstances, the heavy rains give way to good crops, promising farmers a successful harvest. Farmers have recorded achievement after being empowered with new farming skills and applying quality and improved seeds of sesame.
To Balogun, encouraging more Nigerians to get involved in sesame farming will help to get a lot of people out of poverty as many people will benefit out of modern sesame farming and use the benefits to change their livelihoods.