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Tag: Agro export

  • ‘My target is to hit agro export market’

    ‘My target is to hit agro export market’

    Agricultural entrepreneur Mrs. Bosun Solarin is the founder/chief executive of Dasun Integrated Farms Limited, a Lagos-based agro processing company that processes organic vegetables and fruits sourced from local agricultural producers into herbal products. Bosun, who is also a traditional medicine practitioner, also owns BUUSTA Herbal and Natural Remedies Clinic, which specialises in creating herbal blend teas, spices, and various herbs. DANIEL ESSIET tells the inspiring story of an entrepreneur whose target is to hit the international export market.

    She is an innovative agricultural entrepreneur with a resolve to change the dynamics in Nigeria’s agro processing industry. Already, a campaign by founder/Chief Executive of Dasun Integrated Farms Limited, a Lagos-based agro processing company, Mrs. Bosun Solarin, to empower various operators across the industry’s value chain, including agro suppliers, processors, and exporters has reached advanced stage.

    For instance, Bosun whose company processes organic vegetables and fruits sourced from local agricultural producers into herbal products for purchase online has boosted operators’ competitiveness and increased market linkages for their products. She has also promoted their comprehensive understanding of market requirements concerning quality, quantity, and other specifications for international market opportunities.

    The results of her interventions are telling. Several new and existing exporters have gained access to training regarding processing techniques, post-harvest handling, and product packaging and branding. This, according to Bosun, who is also a traditional medicine practitioner, significantly contributed to the enhancement of production standards, value addition, and the optimization of supply chain management.

    Bosun, who owns BUUSTA Herbal and Natural Remedies Clinic, where she specialises in creating herbal blend teas, spices, and various herbs, said she has her eyes set on hitting the lucrative export market. “I wasn’t just looking to sell in Nigeria, but one day I will hit the export market,” she told The Nation, pointing out that it was in a bid to achieve this objective that she attended several trainings.

    Some of the trainings she attended to hone her skills in the agro export business, according to her, featured food processing techniques, product development, international trade and logistics, and food safety training. She also benefited from different local and international fora, which exposed her to understanding the market demand and trends in product design and packaging.

    An alumnus of the Lagos Business School (LBS) and the Enterprise Development Centre, where she earned a Certificate in Entrepreneurial Management, Bosun also served as the immediate Past Chairman of the Export Group at the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), which provides assistance to businesses, training on developing an export action plan, and linkages to reliable export certificate and logistics service providers.

    Bosun’s Certificate in Entrepreneurial Management as well as membership of the LCCI Export Group, fired up her big dreams and strong drive to introduce Nigerian products to international markets and help create jobs for Nigerians especially women. She has motivated and mentored many women entrepreneurs to embark on their entrepreneurial journeys. She also supports those who aspire to launch and develop their own businesses.

    Having earned its reputation for high quality products at reasonable prices, Dasun Integrated Farms Limited has firmly stamped its business footprint on the local market, with Bosun turning her attention to promoting her products internationally. Her first export experience was hugely successful in terms of meeting the requirements for export.

    “There were serious difficulties with the execution of documents, customs clearance issues and a number of others. But we dealt with all of them,” Bosun said, expressing her strong belief that with the world becoming increasingly health conscious, consumers will constantly be on the lookout for products that will contribute to their sustainable lifestyle.

    Accordingly, she has been working on a range of teas and natural infusions to contribute to the change to healthier and more sustainable lifestyles. “I majored in ginger; I mixed ginger, garlic and turmeric and several other things. As of late 2022, I could boast of about 45 different products that I was packing for exhibitions,” she revealed.

    Bosun, however, said her spirit wasn’t just okay because when she was packing those spices, cinnamon was there, black pepper, clove and all that. “I was writing on my label that people can actually take them as the main boosters when they take the powder and put in hot water and drink. So, now we’ve realised that the bulk of the men that are buying it were actually using it for that purpose, not even just for cooking,” she said.

    She said then, she was packaging herbs too, such as moringa powder, scent leaf powder and bitter leaf powder. “But it just occurred to me that since people were actually taking this thing as tea, I could just go into tea production with my spices. At that time too, the International Trade Centre had a project in West Africa that had to do with cassava and mango. I thought I could still add some of my tea and spices. We were accepted there,” she said.

    It all started in the United States in 2016 during Bosun’s brief visit there. “My journey into agri-business started in 2016. I was in the US and I was tuning from one Christian channel to the other when Christian Television Network founder and preacher Marcus Lamb who started the Daystar Television Network channel, spoke about donating funds to Israel,” she recalled.

    She said, that fund, according to the preacher, will be used for farming, and whoever donates will be given a parcel of land in Israel. It will be charted on Google. “That wasn’t just the story,” Bosun said, adding, “I felt moved to donate to the cause, which I did.” However, some days after she came back to Nigeria, there was an International Trade Fair, which she said she attended. “I had gone to the fair looking for everything about agriculture,” she said.

    While expressing regrets that both the Federal Ministry of  Agriculture and Food Security and the Lagos State Ministry of Agriculture  and Food System were not represented, Bosun said: “This led me to  keep walking up and down in search of information. The only thing that looked like agriculture was a company from Ibadan that was displaying machines for processing. So I asked a few questions and I got their brochure and left.”

    However, the agri-preneure was not satisfied with the information at her disposal. She had to call her elder brother who had retired from Lagos State and now stays at Shagamu that she needed land for agriculture. “He responded that there was a family land in our village, that I could go to the village to explore it. He, however, said that the villagers were fighting over it,” Bosun said.

    Read Also: Unrealised agro export potential put at $3.1b

    As it turned out, this provided the budding entrepreneur with the valuable opportunity she needed to commence her farming endeavours and marked a pivotal turning point in her entrepreneurial life. But there was a snag. Bosun had no background in farming or agro processing; her only asset was her strong passion for entrepreneurship.

    However, her entrepreneurial passion was laced with significant doubts and challenges in the early days of building her business. For instance, the arrival of COVID-19 hindered her ability to visit the farm, leading to damage to its infrastructure. “I sunk a borehole and arranged for a two-acre irrigation system from Dizengoff. That was in late 2019 before COVID. Everything was going fine before COVID struck, and one wasn’t able to go to the farm.

    “So, because nobody was there to pump the water, by the time we were able to get to the farm, the borehole had blocked. We weren’t able to use irrigation. The farm had become bushy. Bush animals had eaten off my irrigation material. People who were walking through the farm destroyed my irrigation pipes. That was the pain of that investment,” she recalled.

    Not one to capitulate under pressure or challenges, Bosun undertook remedial and recovery initiatives that involved financial costs. Her optimistic nature, particularly in relation to agriculture, has been a constant feature in her life. She was certain that she would prevail despite the considerable loss she faced. And she actually prevailed. Her first season of cultivation was bountiful.

    This was after she got a plumber to repair the borehole. “I was told my pump wasn’t working.  I went to buy another bigger submersible pump. I was told to strike water; I had to reach 10 feet into the ground. So, I changed the pipe. The electrician spoiled my generator in that process. We repaired the generator. And by the time we finished there was still no water. So, that investment again lost. So we kept at it. We were now depending on only rain-fed agriculture, she said.

    Bosun further revealed that one of the days in late 2020, she was in the farm harvesting plantain when a heavy rainstorm came. The rainstorm went inside the building she had constructed to keep her materials. After two hours of the rainfall, over 400 plantain trees had also fallen. About 200 of those trees were carrying plantain while 200 were about fruiting.

    “This drove me to the Technology Incubation Center, Odogbolu, where I later became an  incubate,” she said, noting that she had to go back from Lagos the following morning to harvest those plantains and took them to Odogbolu. “So, that signaled my journey into processing. One of the people who had their factories there processed the plantains for me within one week. I went back to carry the products which I sold at the Lagos State Ministry of Commerce and Cooperatives MSME Fair,” Bosun narrated

    Not an opportunity to play with, she said she quickly keyed into processing and even started thinking of other products she could exhibit. Eventually, she settled for chili, ginger and 10 other products. “While researching how I would do my packaging, I had read far and wide that importers in Europe and other countries have started rejecting plastic. So my first outing was with biodegradable brown crafted paper crouches,” Bosun revealed.

    “This was because I wasn’t just looking to sell in Nigeria, but that one day I will hit the export market. So, that was the reason why I did that from the outset and at that Fair,” she emphasised, pointing out that at the Lagos State Fair, “it was like my products were the only ones packaged differently.”

    She said a lady even came and filmed the whole thing and was posting it on Instagram. She captioned it, “Can this be done in Nigeria? “So, the story continued. That was my journey into agro processing,” she told The Nation.

    Before her switch to agro processing, Bosun had challenges with cassava production, especially with the marauding herders.

    Her words: “In 2021, I realised that when I planted cassava, the herders and their cows would come and eat it up. It also dawned on me that they could kidnap me. News of kidnapping started going around at the locality. My spirit was just like don’t go and fall prey. So, I just told one Baba that helps me in the town that I don’t think I want to come back to the farm.”

    Despite Baba’s assurances that “nothing will happen,” Bosun’s fears were justified when the same Baba, few weeks later, called her one day and informed her that a woman who owns a store at a filling station near the area was kidnapped; that they came one Monday morning and took her away for one week. They had to pay N5 million ransome before she was released.

    Apart from kidnapping and the activities of herders, Bosun said she was concern with the locals there. “I see them when I’m going to the farm. Sometimes I give them what I have. They see me with different vehicles. These guys are not doing anything. Then kidnapping became localised. So, they were the ones I was scared of. So, I had to stop. That was my last farming activity since February or March 2021,” she disclosed.

    Now, as a new agro entrepreneur, Bosun knew she had a lot to learn. She attended many trainings featuring food processing techniques, product development, international trade and logistics, and food safety training. In doing these, she was, by her own admission, inspired by her big dream and strong drive to introduce Nigerian products to the international markets and help create jobs for Nigerians.

  • How to reduce agro export produce rejections

    With the recent rash of ban on the nation’s agro exports, Dean, School of Basic and Applied Sciences, Babcock University, Ilishan Remo, Ogun State, Prof. Dele Fapohunda hasexpressed  concerns about the safety of export produce.

    Non-oil exports from Nigeria continue to face mass rejection at entry points in many countries in Europe for failure by exporters to comply with standards specified by the countries. The rejected exports are mainly in the food and beverage segment. The reasons for their rejection include the inability of exporters to adhere to global standards, poor packaging, and high level of chemicals, poor labelling, insufficient information on nutritional content, presence of high level of pesticide residue and presence of mycotoxins.

    According to him, there was need to strengthen programmes for insuring the safety of exports  to prevent  rejection  of unsafe ones.

    He said the situation called for total quality control programme through the introduction of requisite institutions to the seaports.

     

    Returning agencies such as National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON)to the seaports, , according to him, would help prevent unsafe food exports from getting  out of the country.

    He said the agencies   have responsibility to protect the public and environmental food health of the country. This because they  carry out a range of safety controls , including  checks on exported  food, inspecting ships and aircraft for food safety and infectious disease control, as well as general public and environmental safety  checks.   At present, European Union (EU) is one of the largest importers of agro exports from Nigeria. Despite the beneficial health effects, there is a growing awareness concerning its microbial and chemical food safety.  The number of rejections ofexport  produce due to non-compliance with EU requirements also increased dramatically during the last few years. Stringent food safety requirements, both from a legislative and private nature, are identified as important bottlenecks to gain access to the high value EU market.

     

  • Govt urged to reposition agro export to boost foreign earnings

    Stakeholders in the agricultural sector have urged the government to reposition agro export sector to promote economic growth and drive employment generation.

    In  a communiqué  issued at the end of a one-day workshop on  Agricultural Produce  Export organised  the Lagos State Agric Development Authority(LSADA), in Lagos, the stakeholders noted  that  there  are  increasing opportunities within agribusiness and  that  diversifying  of agro  commodities  would  generate export revenues.

    The stakeholders consist of  representatives of the Federal Ministry of  Agriculture and Rural Development, LSADA,Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS), Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC), National  Agency for Food  and  Drugs Administration and Control(NAFDAC), Bank of Industry(BoI), Bank of Agriculture(BoA),Accion Micro  Finance Bank, Nigerian Agricultural Insurance Company(NAIC),exporters  and  farmers.

    The workshop noted that  investment is vital for the development of agro-industry since such activities require high levels of technical capacity, links to markets and knowledge of market requirements.

    According to the workshop, increased investment in transportation and other infrastructure could help the sector diversify and to integrate their production vertically to encourage agro-industry. Any expansion in processing may have the effect of increasing the well-being of the people employed in the sector, providing higher wage jobs, and producing a higher-value product for exports.

    The  workshop  noted  that market integration is necessary   as there  opportunities for further development of  agro  exports and introduction of higher-value products.

    The  workshop reiterated  the natural  export  advantages that Lagos has and exporters  and farmers  can  utilise  them  to generate foreign exchange for  the country.

    The stakeholders also appreciated the determination of the Lagos State government to increase the production of higher value-added agricultural produce while continuing to produce popular commodities, fresh vegetables and fruits.

    The workshop recognised the efforts of the government through the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA) to bring back agriculture to its rightful position and the collaboration of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Nigerian Export Promotion Council to facilitate agric export development.

     

  • ‘Nigeria needs more agro cargo ports’

    The construction of new private ports for agro exports is vital to attracting foreign investors to the sector.

    President, National Cashew Association of Nigeria (NCAN), Mr Tola Faseru, said global agribusinesses eyeing the international markets were concerned with inadequate numbers of ports to assist them move their produce, adding that this is a major reason for the country’s decreased ability to compete in the international market

    Despite being one of the continent’s largest agriculture exporters, the country has made little investment in the agro export logistics over the years, resulting in inefficiency and increased food export costs.

    He said the ports and railways would  need to double capacities to match the rate of growth in agro commodities produce across the country.

    He said transport costs from the farm to the port, are higher and can be returned if the logistics system is improved.

    The National President, Federation of Agricultural Commodity Associations of Nigeria (FACAN), Dr Victor Inyama, urged operators to improve facilities at the seaports. He said the bulk of agricultural produce are exported through the ports.

    According to him, the ports lack sufficient capacity and infrastructure to handle the increasing quantities of agribulk exports. There are breakdowns of facilities during the peak periods, with queues of trucks building up outside the main ports’ gates, while vessels, too, struggle to find berths, he added.

    Also, the spokesman for the Cocoa Association of Nigeria, RoboAdhuze, called on the government to be serious about declining transportation infrastructure to avoid significant short and long-term damage to the  sector.

    He said agro-industrialists have more reasons to lament, adding that the ports system and its logistics counterpart are letting them down. In parallel, significant efforts need to be made to finally build new railways and also to pave roads, to provide suitable connection between the production areas and the selected northeast ports.

  • Agro export future looks promising

    Agricultural exports are real impact on the economy and supporting creation of jobs.

    Speaking with The Nation, the Chief Executive, Obiora Madu said cocoa, cashew and other commodities are expected to find growth opportunities

    To this end, he said the government need to strengthen agriculture and help put the nation on solid footing to maintain strong exports in the years to come.

    According to him, there are no barriers to agro commodities while there are moves toward new agreements to expand exports.

    He said the global market offers a good opportunity for agro exports.

    Robust export growth, he stressed underpinned economic expansion and that opportunity to reduce poverty lies in agriculture.

    The global markets, Madu said offer attractive opportunities for producers. For him, many of the opportunities are yet to be captured. According to him, agricultural products are becoming big export items. Much of the growth in exports, he noted concerns cocoa, cashew nuts and others. He said Nigeria stands its strong agricultural export orientation.

    Madu called on agric producers to seek opportunities provided by agriculture and food industries.

    He said the food producers are on the doorstep of exciting new opportunities. With the rise of markets in Europe and the rest of the world, Madu said there was enormous potential for suppliers of high quality food commodities.

  • Agro export to account for 50% of Nigeria’s forex

    Agro export to account for 50% of Nigeria’s forex

    THE Federal Government yesterday disclosed   plans to earn over 50 per cent of its foreign exchange  from agro-industrial exports by 2020.

    The plans are contained in a draft trade policy, which was considered and reviewed during a meeting of the Enlarged National Focal Point (ENPF) on trade matters in Abuja.

    The meeting, which was chaired by the Permanent Secretary, Trade and Investment, Dauda Kigbo, was to review the policy developed in 2002, with a view to making inputs by the various stakeholders.

    The document stated: “Agriculture was a key economic driver and accounts for some 35 per cent of GDP, but underdeveloped and inefficient despite the large land area available and favourable agro-ecological environment.”

    It said agriculture, which exports exceed $2 billion annually, mainly concentrate on a few unprocessed products, while agricultural import of about $3.5 billion are mainly unprocessed foods products.

    The document indicated that government was poised to put in place an agricultural trade policy aimed at increasing foreign exchange earnings from agro-industrial exports, as well as ensure free flow of agricultural products within the country

    It said the plan is aimed at encouraging agricultural processing  link with the manufacturing sector and value addition processes, including imports of semi-processes products for further processing.

    “The agriculture trade police will improve product quality through implementing appropriate standards and  operating procedures and enforcing compliance.

    It is also aimed at encouraging exports through improved facilities for handling and storage of export products and establishment of export promotion centres.

    The policy  is aimed at improving export market information and provide appropriate incentives, including encouragement to investment. It will also help improve farmers’ access to productivity-enhancing inputs including imported inputs,” it stated.

    Kigbo in his remarks, said the enlarged national focal point meeting, is a body charged with the responsibility of preparing Nigeria’s position on all trade issues

    He said the meeting was expected to consider the draft trade policy which has been developed in 2002 with a view to making inputs.

    The measures according to him include ensuring strong and robust fiscal policy, tax policy as well as trade policy to develop trade as basis for rapid, equitable and sustainable growth through broadening the national product base.

     He said the export policy would be focused on developing markets in ECOWAS and taking advantage of the US African Growth Opportunity Acts (AGOA) and opportunities in other specialised markets.