As Nigeria prepares to export yams to the United Kingdom and United States, the Acting Executive Director, Agricultural and Rural Management Institute, Dr Olufemi Oladunni, has warned against rejection as some of the produce could be found to be unwholesome.
He urged the government to put measures in place to address the problem as the commodity.
The new strategy, he said, would provide the opportunity to market fresh yam effectively, grow markets and expand into new markets.
According to him, the industry faces tremendous opportunities as well as challenges and requires support policies, private sector investment, and to become organised as a whole value chain.
He explained that the strategy would ensure Nigeria provides premium quality yam products with global penetration and contributing to an improved economy and livelihoods.
Oladunni urged the players to explore uncharted markets in a move to diversify export markets.
African Centre for Supply Chain (ACSC) Director-General, Dr Obiora Madu, warned that Nigeria is bound to face competition from Ghana whose export value and volumes for yam have increased.
He said it was important for the government to meet with yam value chain actors to decide on market targets and support requirements, discuss potential for investment and roll out strategies for yam development.
He noted that contamination of export produce is emerging as a major food safety challenge. According to him, export produce have been rejected because they have been linked to contamination as a result of the use of preservatives. In addition, incidence of food borne diseases caused by contaminated exports has increased in recent years.
The diseases, according to experts, are not only a burden on public health but also cause heavy economic loss to the food industry.
According to Oladunni, food safety especially when the produce is meant for export should be a focus for all players. Guarding against acts that importers see as intended to cause wide-scale harm to their consumers is important.