Cassava farming has become big commercial business. There are opportunities for the roots to be processed into various products, including cassava flour, starch, and ethanol and glucose syrup. DANIEL ESSIET reports.
Chief Executive, Hastom, Debo Thomas, is the owner of a thriving cashew business in Oyo State. His accomplishment is a true success story of its own.
Hastom has grown from a farming venture to a leader in the agriculture sector to becoming a provider of farm set up management services.
Known in his community as a successful farmer, he has employed a lot of people apart from earning a livelihood for his family. His brilliant performance has turned him into a source of inspiration for many. He makes money cultivating cashews.
However, he has made cassava transformation the core of his current business model.
Thomas noted that the global demand for cassava is expected to increase by 50 per cent in the new year, making it a lucrative agro-commodity. Also, that global demand for cassava products such as flour, starch, ethanol, chips and pellets now runs into several billions of dollars in transaction value with China leading the demand pack.
Other markets for cassava products, he mentioned, include the United States, Netherland, Spain, France, and Canada, among others.
Buoyed by this, he has mounted a campaign to get more Nigerians to produce more cassava for industrial purposes.
He said his organisation has made available 500 acres of fertile farmland that will be given to individuals who are looking to get into cassava farming.
At the company’s Adebayo Alata Ind. Layout agro entrepreneurs are introduced to a lease package which features farm set up and management services.
Partners in the project, he explained, would acquire a lease package, for a period of 11 to 16 months only.
He added: “While Hastom handles the property lease, set up, management and overseeing of harvest and sales on behalf of our partner, the partner’s funds will only finance the set-up and management of their cassava farm.
“Between 11 – 16 months after cultivation, the cassava tubers would be harvested and sold off to our offtakers at the prevailing market price.”
Every investor is expected to invest in at least 10 acres. The total set up cost, including security fees, is N1,189,000 for 10 acres.
After harvest, Thomas projects return on investment to be N3million annually. He maintained, however, that the projections are based on their experience and past performances, adding, “It may not be 100 per cent accurate for the future. There might be differences between the forecasted and actual results, because events and circumstances frequently might not occur as expected, as they are dependent in large part upon factors over which the company has no control.”
He further explained: “Harvest would be between 11 to 16 months after cultivation, depending on the maturity of the cassava, prevailing market price, among other factors.”
Thomas said his organisation manages 10,000 acres of cashew farmlands for clients, offering absentee farmer partnerships along the way