The Nation Newspaper

Tag: cooking

  • JUST IN: Nigerian chef Tope Maggie ‘breaks’ Irish chef’s cooking record

    JUST IN: Nigerian chef Tope Maggie ‘breaks’ Irish chef’s cooking record

    Nigerian chef, Temitope Adebayo, also known as Tope Maggie, has surpassed the Guinness World Record for the longest cooking marathon by an individual, surpassing Irish chef, Alan Fisher’s 119-hour and 57-minute record.

    Chef Maggie concluded a 200-hour cook-a-thon in the early hours of Saturday, November 18.

    This was announced in a video posted on the Oyo Affairs X page.

    The video was captioned: ‘Congratulations to Chef Tope Maggie and his team for completing a 200-hour Cook-A-Thon, which came to an end at exactly 3am this morning.’

    The cook-a-thon reportedly started on Thursday evening and ended on Saturday morning. 

    Read Also: GWR: Oyo Chef begins 200-hour marathon cooking

    It took place at the Ogbomoso Recreation Club in Ogbomoso, Oyo State, across LAUTECH College of Health Sciences in Isale-General.

    Tope is awaiting confirmation of his record by the GWR as congratulations and celebration continues over his feat.

    The Nation reported that the Chef Hilda Baci was recently dethroned by Irish Chef Fisher.

  • Kukah cooking full emptiness

    Kukah cooking full emptiness

    The revered Father Matthew Hassan Kukah, Catholic Bishop of Sokoto, just cooked his latest broth.  But it is nothing but full emptiness — taken from the angle of the good priest as sound public thinker, teeming with deep knowledge of Nigerian contemporary history.

    Still, on the thinker’s plane.  The good father loves to impress with great polemics — a little to the left; and a little to the right; like Ibrahim Babangida’s doomed two parties.  But at the end, your brain flogged and drained, you just wonder what he is saying.

    To be fair though, his latest broth pushed something specific, even if it hit new lows by passing the military — or didn’t he? — as some deus-ex-machina, fit and proper to fix the Nigerian crisis of nationhood.

    Has reason so spectacularly failed among Nigeria’s most rigorous thinkers — among whom the Catholic priest clearly classes himself — that their forensic minds must throw up past debacles and future miracles?

    Father Kukah let it slip, rippling with avant-garde knowledge and holy wisdom, that Nigerians could not afford to, much longer, “take the military for granted”.

    Pray, who are the military and what what might that mean?  Are the military a political party, constitutionally free to join political frays?

    Or o, on the philosophical plain: the military,  all-wise and supremely above board, should come, post-haste, and sack the democratic order yet again?

    Perhaps the holy father should educate the woolly-brained hoi polloi, on what he meant by not taking “the military for granted”.

    This is a most condemnable baiting — if not outright goading — by a man who definitely ought to know better.  It is a sickly reminiscence of that sorry period of Nigerian life, when some otherwise respected “intellectuals” would hug to crass emotions, and with sententious zest, beckon the military to come roll in their tanks.

    Why, even the stark Sani Abacha was passed as some “democratic general” come to revalidate MKO’s mandate!

    Twice, in less than three years, the holy Father’s trumpeting has not quite matched his priestly and thinking reputation.

    When Buhari’s anti-corruption war debuted in 2015, Father Kukah did not quite ripple with priestly zeal, to clear Nigeria’s public finance of sleaze.  Rather, he called on Nigerians to “move on” because President Goodluck Jonathan had done fantastically well for losing election and quitting.  Was he supposed to stay put, holy Father?

    But you could even pass that for his democratic opinion, even if it challenged his priestly essence, as the society’s moral anchor.

    Now, he is suggesting the military, which by the Constitution, are subordinate to the democratic order, as having intervening rights.  That is bordering on high treason, no matter how putative.

    That is why the Catholic Church must call this priest to order.  He sure has rights as a citizen.  But his right ends when he starts insinuating extra-constitutional ideas, just because there is tension in the land.

    That is approaching a very dangerous territory, particularly with Nigerian past experience of abject military ruin, which even after 18 years of straight democracy is yet to be cleared.

  • WHO’s danger alert on firewood sparks outrage

    WHO’s danger alert on firewood sparks outrage

    Among the household items used for cooking, firewood remains one of the oldest commonly used across the country. From the Stone Age till date, it has been consistently in use across rural and urban areas. In recent times, however, the practice has come under serious condemnation from environment-related organisations at local and international levels who are advocating the use of stove to mitigate the perceived danger that firewood constitutes to the lives of its users as well as the environment. Is this a genuine concern or another attempt at foisting western ideologies on Nigerians? INNOCENT DURU reports.

    DOES cooking with firewood really expose the users to health challenges? The World Health Organisation (WHO) and many non-governmental organisations working on environmental issues believe it does. But not so for many locals who engage in the practice.

    According to WHO, more than 93,000 Nigerian women and children die annually from firewood smoke. Globally, the organisation said that no fewer than 4.3 million people die annually from illnesses attributable to the air pollution caused by inefficient use of solid fuels for cooking. According to WHO, 12 per cent of the figure is due to pneumonia, 34 per cent from stroke, 26 per cent from ischaemic heart disease, 22 per cent from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and 6 per cent from lung cancer.

    Corroborating WHO’s position, Techno Oil, a Nigerian organisation that markets a wide range of petroleum products, said: “The smoke contains complex gases and fine particles, which affects both the lungs and the heart. Firewood smoke is a great source of what scientists term fine particle pollution. The size of particles is directly linked to their potential for causing health problems. Small particles less than 10 micrometers in diameter pose the greatest problems, because they can get deep into the lungs, and some may even get into the bloodstream. Among these particles are “fine particles,” which are 2.5 micrometers in diameter and smaller.

    Numerous scientific studies have linked fine particle pollution exposure to a variety of problems, including increased respiratory symptoms such as irritation of the airways, coughing or difficulty in breathing; decreased lung function; aggravated asthma; development of chronic bronchitis; irregular heartbeat; non-fatal heart attacks and premature death in people with heart or lung disease.

    Convincing as the above analysis are, many people who spoke to The Nation said aside from their eyes emitting tears, they had never experienced any health challenges using firewood to cook. A respondent, who identified himself simply as Amina, wondered how WHO and other non-governmental organisations come about the figure of people that die annually cooking with firewood.

    “This is totally strange and can never be true. How did they know the number of people killed? Is it that they were going from one community to another or from one state to another to get the figures? How many people have died so far this year? They should show us their pictures, tell us their names, and the communities they came from.

    “If this were true, all the people in the rural areas would have died because that is what they use all the time. If you conduct a test on the people in the rural areas who are using firewood, you would find that they are healthier than many of the people using gas and stove to cook.”

    Apparently trying to justify the use of firewood, Amina said: “Since people have been using firewood, have you heard of firewood explosion? But you have heard of gas and kerosene explosions. So, which one is better? They should perish the idea. If my parents and forefathers used firewood and it neither gave them health problems nor killed them, it can never happen to me.”

    A food vendor, who gave her name as Mrs Agnes Abraham, said: “I have been using firewood for donkey’s years and I have never had any health problems. Before I came to Lagos, it was the same firewood we were using in the village and nothing happened to anybody.

    “Unlike here in the city where you see all manner of ailments, especially on the television, people in the village who use firewood don’t have such sicknesses and they don’t die early like we have it here. Is it not this same firewood that our forefathers also used and lived above 100 years?

    “Please tell those people to go and sit down if they have noting tangible to talk about. Cooking with firewood may be causing health problems for non-Africans because you know that they are not as strong. But for us here in Africa, especially Nigeria, firewood is very much okay. The common challenge with cooking with firewood is that the smoke it emits could be hurting the eyes and cause it to become red. But once you use yeast, the eyes will become clear again.”

    The information about the health hazards of cooking with firewood was also strange to Mrs Bisade Oni, a fufu (local delicacy) seller.

    Surprised by the information, she asked rhetorically:” When did that start? I have been using firewood for ages and nothing has happened to me. In fact, I would say that I have been using it from childhood because that was what our parents used back in the village. How do you think it is possible for me to make fufu on a stove?

    “I find it convenient doing it with firewood. Many people do complain that their eyes emit tears when they cook with firewood, but I don’t experience that. It depends on how good you are at using it. It is only if you don’t use dry wood that you have smoke hurting your eyes. But if you use dry wood and put them in place properly, you will not have any problem.”

    The same view was expressed by Ernest Obabiyi who said he had never heard that anybody suffered complications or died from cooking with firewood.

    He said: “It is true that the smoke can hurt your eyes or disturb you when you inhale it. But I have never heard that people suffered chronic ailments or died from using firewood, though I also know that using firewood could lead to domestic accident. One of such happened back then in Ondo State when a boy that had epilepsy went to cook, and in the course of doing that, his health problem started and he had part of his body burnt by fire. That is the most that I have seen.”

     

    Environmentalists knock users

    Experts on environmental issues have described the attitude of the users as gross ignorance. The Communications Officer for International Centre for Energy Environment and Development (ICEED), Adewale Ajibade, said that firewood is a silent killer but a lot of people are not aware of it.

    He said: “It has nothing to do with capitalism. A lot of wrong things have been done by our parents which we didn’t know, but with the help of science, they have been brought to the fore. For example, the killing of twins was a norm until Mary Slessor stepped in to say it is a health condition and that a woman can have more than one child. If technology brings this kind of issue to the fore, I don’t think we should shy away from it and say it is the western world that is trying to foist their capitalist tendencies on us.

    “It has been proven that globally that over 4 million deaths occur annually due to cooking with open fire. It is not only in Nigeria; it is an epidemic that is happening in a lot of countries in the world. This smoke that is released comes with harmful toxic gases. According to a report by WHO, inhaling this toxic is like burning 400 cigarettes in one hour. Just imagine somebody cooking for the family inhaling smoke that is up to consuming 400 cigarettes in one hour.

    “In Nigeria, if I want to be precise, there are about 95, 300 deaths that occur annually, all tied to smoke-related diseases. This happens unconsciously. When the woman is cooking, she inhales it. Sometimes, it causes low weight of babies. Apart from that, it also causes lung disease and pneumonia in some children. From this statistics that I gave you, it makes this practice the third highest killer after malaria and HIV/AIDS.”

    Ajibade added: “There are also the issues of environmental degradation. Nigeria loses about 3 per cent of its forest annually. Deforestation is happening at an alarming rate. This is one of our projects in Katsina where we are providing 35,000 energy-efficient wood stoves to checkmate the deforestation menace and also the smoke inhalation menace.

    “Even though this stove we are providing uses firewood. It reduces the quantity of firewood that they use. The clean cooking stove could make them use a quantity of firewood they would have used in one day for about five days or more. It reduces the continuous cutting down of trees.

    “The project we are handling in Katsina is twofold. Oxfam is handling the tree planting aspect. They are supposed to plant about 5.5 million trees in four years, but if we don’t provide an alternative for these people. After the trees are planted, they go back to cut them for firewood.

    “These people cannot afford the expensive clean fuel. We are trying as much as possible to discourage people from using kerosene because it is a dirty fuel and it is expensive in the long run. “

    Asked if tests were conducted on victims to reach the conclusion that they became sick from cooking with firewood, Ajibade said: “The tests that were conducted were on the stoves and their emissions. But in a few cases, several people complained of severe respiratory problems.

    “There was a cook in a school in Ebonyi State where we went to install institutional stove. Prior to that time, the woman said that she used to have reddish eyes bringing out water and that she used to feel drowsy as if she smoked Indian hemp. After the installation, she said she felt relived.

    “Another thing she didn’t notice before then was that her temperature was always high in the evening after using firewood. But all that stopped after we installed the stove. The prices of the stoves vary because there are different producers.

    “But we are not even the one selling them. We are training local artisans to build these stoves and become entrepreneurs themselves. The thermal efficiency is about 60 per cent.”

    The Executive Director of Sustainable Waste Recycling Community of Nigeria, Adewole Taiwo, also differed with the users. According to him: “During the Stone Age, the volume of firewood used was not the same as is being used now. The environment was greener with less population and less carbon monoxide emission than we have now. There are many alternatives to burning firewood: the clean stoves, briquettes which can replace firewood/charcoal, electric cooker, among others.

    “Where these alternatives are not available, every single tree fell must be replaced with a minimum of five new ones to save the environment. And health wise, it must not be used indoor at all because it causes eye and throat irritation while the long-term effects is respiratory disease and cancer.”

    Like Adewale, Taiwo said: “It has a great impact on the environment because people fell tree indiscriminately all in the name of firewood without planting new ones. The same tree fell provided us with oxygen and consumed all the excess carbon monoxide pollution within the environment. So, cutting more wood for firewood without replacing it means reduction in oxygen and increase in carbon monoxide pollution within our environment.

    “Health wise, it is very dangerous because it greatly affects indoor air quality. The smoke from the burning of firewood is very dangerous to those that use firewood, especially indoor. It has great health implication in terms of the quality of air inhaled. And most of the firewood used are not fully dried. They contain little moisture. It takes time to burn and release more carbon monoxide into the environment.”

     

    Crisis in clean cooking  stoves sector

    Adewale denied that ICEED and other members that formed the coalition known as Nigeria Alliance for Clean Cooking Stove was not carried along when ex-President Goodluck Jonathan approved the contract of N5 billion for the Ministry of Environment to provide 20 million units of the stove for rural women.

    Ajibade said: “As a matter of fact, we didn’t know anything about the process and the contract until it was in the news and people started calling us because we are the secretariat. People believed that if there should be anything happening in the clean stove sector in Nigeria, we should know. We were as shocked as anybody else.

    “We are going to ensure that we get to the roots of the matter because this is a very young sector that there is a bit of resistance for people to switch to. We don’t want to be marred by corruption or scandal. From our end, we know nothing about it and we are not into partnership with them in anyway.”

    Earlier in the year, precisely January, the House of Representatives, gave its committees on Anti-Corruption, Environment and Habitat six weeks to investigate the former president’s “Clean Stove for Rural Women scheme” contract of about N9.287 billion.

    The resolution followed a motion by Abiodun Faleke (APC-Lagos), which was unanimously adopted by members through a voice vote.

    Faleke noted that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) had approved a contract for the supply of 20 million units of clean stove and wonder bags under the clean stove scheme for rural women.

    He added that the contract was at a unit cost of N464.00, amounting to about N9.287 billion. The lawmaker said that following the approval of FEC, the Federal Ministry of Finance released the sum of N5 billion to the Federal Ministry of Environment for the execution of the project.

    The lawmaker expressed concern that less than 750,000 units were said to have been assembled and delivered at the velodrome of the National Stadium, Abuja, which was commissioned by former Vice President, Namadi Sambo.

    He noted that there was no beneficiary present at the commissioning nor was anyone later given the stove to achieve its intended purpose.

    The mandate of the committee saddled with the investigation was to find out details of the contract, number of units supplied, their mode of distribution and names of beneficiaries on state by state basis.

  • Cooking her way to success

    Food entrepreneur Miss Bolaji Ekundayo is one of the  few graduates, who can boast of their own businesses before graduating.

    The embodiment of entrepreneurial spirit, the Obafemi Awolowo University graduate’s passion  for running a business is noteworthy. Miss Bolaji represents a strong entrepreneur and innovative thinker.

    Her entrepreneurial journey began after she found out at an early age that the food sector was her true calling. Though she started a small venture, today, she is running a thriving food business, providing catering services at weddings and otherv events.

    She has catered for dozens of private events and personal “cheffed” to many. She said her undergraduate days were challenging yet rewarding.

    While at university, Bolaji created tasteful soups and meals, which students found delightful. They helped advertise her culinary expertise through word of mouth and recommendations.

    Her words: “Customers come via word of mouth.” In this way, she began to think of the university as her “home away from home”.

    Running a business was not easy; she encountered challenges along the way. The jam-packed weekend schedule that comes with jobs means early wake-up times and many late nights to prepare for events.

    However, she embraces these challenges, noting: “It was necessary to experience the bad days in order to realise and appreciate the good ones.‘’

    The university has provided her with an opportunity to pursue her passion and continue building her business. The experience opened  many doors in her life.

    After graduation and completing her National Youth Service, Bolaji    decided against paid employment.

    As business is growing, she is trying to break into corporate events. Her food is made like any at home. Her ambition is to make it easy for everyone in Lagos to eat good food during events.

  • The women cooking their way to independence

    The women cooking their way to independence

    South Korean-based social enterprise OYORI ASIA was initiated in 2008 with the aim to “help marginalized women through the restaurant business,” according to founder and CEO Jihey Lee. The company has since trained women across three Asian countries, helping them find their feet again.

    “I have been making the broth for twelve hours now. It is not easy to flavor the broth without MSG.”

    In the early days of the summer with temperatures reaching 27 °C, Vo Thi Ngoc Nhon (37) was making a broth in a small kitchen. For Ngoc Nhon, who became a single mother after she emigrated from Vietnam to South Korea to marry a Korean in 2006, the kitchen is the only place she can earn an income. After seven years of doing a variety of different jobs while also looking after her new-born baby, she opened a Vietnamese restaurant near Jangsungbagi Station last year. It has been twenty years since the phenomenon of ‘international marriage’ emerged in Korea to relieve the problems of rural men who could not marry. Such international marriage, based on economic interests rather than love, led to a surge in divorce rates. In the last five years, 128,864 international marriages were registered; however, the number of divorces reached 50,853. How does Korean society embrace ‘multicultural single moms’, like Ngoc Nhon, living in economic isolation following divorce?

    That’s where OYORI ASIA has stepped in. Jihye Lee, the company’s founder who launched Oyori in 2008, said, “I wanted to help marginalized women through the restaurant business.” The enterprise started its business in a small corner of Sangsu-dong, Mapo-gu, and is now expanding its activities even as far as Nepal.

    A cooking license after 19 attempts

    Ngoc Nhon became the first entrepreneur produced by Oyori. In 2006, Ngoc Nhon migrated to Korea and gave birth to a child shortly after. However, her marriage did not last long, due to her husband’s gambling addiction and debts. In 2010, she found herself alone with her son, without divorce alimony. Two years later, Ngoc Nhon met the founder of Oyori. She received four years of systematic cooking training from the head chef of Oyori, and finally gained a cooking license in Korean cuisine after 19 attempts.

    Last year, she opened a Vietnamese restaurant called ‘Asian Bowl’ on the second floor of a building near Jangsungbagi Station. Her restaurant started with a deposit of 20 million won and a monthly rent of 80 million won. To make profits, she needed to sell more than 80 dishes of 7,000 won. However, this half-year-old restaurant has a maximum of 50 customers per day.

    “I do not use MSG. I will find a soup flavor that even babies can eat,” Ngoc Nhon said, as she continued to check the boiling soup. She knows that using a large amount of MSG creates an addictive flavor. However, she prefers to make a homely taste using only natural ingredients. Her principle is to boil the meat broth for twelve hours every day and to discard the unsold portion rather than reusing it.

    Her dream is to completely settle in Korea while making food from her homeland with other women like her. She is currently working with another single mother, Pham Thi Thoan (26). Thi Thoan also married at the age of 19, and got divorced in 2011 shortly after her baby was born. The pair collaborate like sisters on the restaurant, which is open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.

    “If they had been self-reliant in their homelands, they would not have had to come to Korea”

    The ultimate goal of the social enterprise OYORI ASIA is to support women like Ngoc Nhon to become self-reliant and live their lives. Why did founder Jihey Lee, who was once an outstanding marketer at an IT company, decide to set up this social enterprise?

    “I felt skeptical about the way I made money with the contents full of sensationalism. As a woman, I did not want such anti-feminist things, so I started a new business”, Lee said.

    She opened a restaurant with the conviction that the easiest point of entry for socially-vulnerable immigrant women without educational backgrounds or personal networks would be the restaurant business. Lee is also interested in the development of local franchises of Oyori for women in underdeveloped nations. One such franchise is ‘CaféMitini’, launched in 2013 in Kathmandu, Nepal. It offers free tutoring and internship programs for women who cannot afford barista training due to the high costs. She explained, “The reasons why women in poor countries choose international marriage are mostly economic. If they had been self-reliant in their homelands, they would not have had to come to Korea to marry an utter stranger”. She added, “We should extend the support for self-reliance to women in underdeveloped countries in Asia”.

    The efforts of Oyori are bearing fruits. Dawa Dabuti Sherpa, who has worked at Café Mitini for four years and first joined as a trainee, has finally realized her dream. Expect the opening of ‘Café Mitini No.2’ in July this year, she said.  “I dream of becoming a good barista through the program. I would like to open a big café in my homeland, Nepal, in the future.”

     

    http://www.oyori.asia/

     

     

  • Passion for cooking

    Passion for cooking

    The prevailing harsh economy it has not killed the appetite for good food. Chief Executive, Fifi’s Food House, Onimim Fifi Karibo, runs a flourishing restaurant in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital. DANIEL ESSIET reports.

    Fifi Karibo is a young chef/entrepreneur in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State Capital, and she is doing well.

    She  has  two missions: to challenge  food lovers  to  seek good food; and make the sector the most sustainable in the country. Her initial interest was not in food business as she did not read food technology. She studied biochemistry from University of Port Harcourt.  “After my national service year, I nursed the aspiration of going for an MSc programme in the United Kingdom. I successfully got admission in a couple of schools, but my funding plans fell through. I tried a couple of times and was actually losing my mind.  I felt stuck to a particular spot even though I had engaged in other things. I felt the need to earn more. Ifeoma my friend was the chief pesterer. She would say to me: ‘Fif, you should start a business with this talent. You can cook.’ All my mind was were snow was falling and in a more ‘dignifying’ MSc programme. I paid no attention until the realisation hit me. Naira fell even further,“ she said.

    According to Fifi her cooking and keeping house talent began when she was young. Her home was a huge influence on her  and she decided to do something with food.

    She started Fifi’s Food House  in March last year. However, before she fully lauched her outing, she has done a lot of cooking since 2013, starting with her  sisters’ pot and gas cooker.

    Providence worked for her as her business began to grow. Inspired by the array of customers that patronise her business and the  feedback she got, she went a step further to develop a range of menu, fulfilling her ambition to make it easy for everyone to get a good local or international dish. “The business is young and a lot of things are still taking shape. We are growing.”

    She uses fresh ingredients  and popular local dishes.

    Aside food business, Fifi is also running a high profile events management business.  She has one permanent and a couple of temporary workers, and hires more hands when the occasion arises.

    She, however, said she has made a couple of mistakes in the course of her business  and  has learnt from them.

    “ One mistake I made was under pricing and over pricing. Either way, I shot myself in the foot,” she said.

    Giving tips on how to take off in such business, she said: “Just start, even if you have to start small. Get knowledge in your chosen field. Network like your life depends on it. Do not be shy to talk about your business, you never know who is your next client. Use the new media (especially social media) to your advantage. This is more than one, let me stop here.”

    She said she was satisfied with the  feedback she was getting, even when she  made little or no profit. The fact that her clients were satisfied made her happy and fulfilling.

    Her Fifi’s Food House, as she called, is a one stop shop for good food.

    Her  purpose of doing the business, she said, was to serve beautifully prepared, restaurant food to discerning professionals through an unsurpassed delivery/take-out-eat in experience. The business, she said,  has been enterprising, as she always seeks to improve on ways of offering better services.

    Fifi was involved in Port Harcourt International Food Festival, a platform designed to celebrate different culinary cultures with focus on indigenous cuisines. The primary objective is to enlighten the public on the issue of food insecurity.

    While it took her a lot of efforts and financial commitment to do successful food business, she is happy she is  realising her vision and plan, and giving customers every reason to stop by for a meal at her place.

    One of her criteria for measuring success is running a business where people  and families want to eat. When regular customers recommend people to eat at her place, to her, it is a clear indication that she has created exactly the right environment.

  • Why cost of cooking gas is high, by NLNG

    •Firm has helped in flaring reduction

    The Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Limited (NLNG) has attributed the high cost of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to logistics and lack of infrastructure.

    The General Manager, External Relations, Nigeria LNG, Dr Kudo Eresia-Eke, made this known during an interaction with reporters in Lagos.

    He said the cost of LPG (also called cooking gas) is supposed to be cheaper than it is, but owing to some factors, off-takers of the commodity add the extra cost they incur, making the end-users pay more. The price of 12.5kg cylinder of cooking gas is about N3000 in Lagos.

    He explained that if the infrastructure is available, the product would have be supplied from NLNG’s Bonny plant in Rivers State to Lagos, and to consumers but for lack of infrastructure, the product is delivered through vessels (ships). The ships take the LPG from Bonny to Lagos from where it is pumped into tanks at depots.

    Eresia-Eke said the intervention of NLNG has reduced the cost of the gas. According to him, supply of LPG to domestic market was not initially planned, but the company started the supply of LPG to the domestic market in 2007, when the refineries were down and supply affected. Now, the problem of inadequate supply had solved, he added.

    He said: “The intervention, which is in line with company’s vision of helping to build a better Nigeria, has significantly contributed to the stimulation and development of the domestic LPG market in Nigeria and has effectively brought down the price of cooking gas from over N7,000 in 2007 to less than N3,500 per 12.5kg cylinder today.”

    He added that NLNG is committed to delivering 250,000 tonnes of LPG yearly and has signed sales and purchase agreements (SPAs) with 15 off-takers for the lifting of LPG for the domestic market.

    Eresia-Eke also said the company has made huge gains on gas flaring.

    According to him, gas flaring was within the range of  50-70 per cent, but now it is about 10 per cent. He said the NLNG has created impact in gas flaring reduction, but noted there is still more to be done.

    He said because the interest of oil firms was in oil, gas then was a nuisance. ‘’Because you have to get rid of the gas before you get the oil, associated gas was flared. That is one of the fundamental reasons for the establishment of the NLNG, to contain the menace of gas flaring,’’ he added.

    He said there is almost an equation of pricing irrespective of location on the world stage as of today.

    “The major thing that has occurred in terms of NLNG and gas flow is the related technology in place. In the market, it is obvious that supply is so high; however, the price is very low. One thing is sure, it can no longer be what it used to be in terms of purchasing energy, cost and technology; and no one knows how it will end,” he said.

     

  • ‘Embrace use of cooking gas’

    Residents of Oto –Awori Local Council Development Area (LCDA) have been urged to embrace the use of cooking gas in their home as it has been seen to be cleaner and safer.

    In an awareness and free gas distribution campaign, the council in conjunction with Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources Development urged residents  to embrace the use cooking gas because it safe and cheaper.

    The council chairman, Mr Bolaji  Kayode Robert  said that the distribution of free Eko Gas Cylinder will benefit people the council.

    He said:  ‘‘Lagos State government has displayed usual determination and commitment in achieving set goal aimed at improving the quality of lives of its citizenry and I can categorically say that those of us at the grassroots are direct beneficiaries as can be witnessed here.

    ‘‘This administration has lived up to international standards of good governance found only in the developed countries.”

  • ‘How cooking fired my interest in business’

    ‘How cooking fired my interest in business’

    Jumoke Omojuwa, the  MD/CEO of Spices Confectionery Ltd, is a graduate  and  chartered accountant.He is a  beneficiary of You Win Platform, a grant from the Federal Government of Nigeria . In this interview with GBENGA ADERANTI, she talks about her  business and why her business continues to grow despite odds, among other issues.

    You are a chartered accountant, why did you go into private business?

    Time. I had to weigh the time for my young family as I lost our first child after delivery.

    What were you doing before you started your business?

    I was working with a media outfit as an Assistant Manager in the Finance and Administration Department before I resigned. After resignation, I was at home for a few months. Being a very active person, I was bored. I thought I could start doing something while waiting. I had always loved cooking and going the extra mile to get a very tasty meal. I , therefore, went into confectionery .

    What were the challenges you faced when you first started?

    It was hard to convince people to buy my products. The supermarkets that eventually agreed to sell our products got them on the sale on return basis. The loss was much, but I was undeterred.

    How much did you first invest in the business?

    I started with a mixer bought at N2,000. I supported this with other tools from my kitchen.

    Your expansion has been tremendous; how did you raise the capital to grow the business?

    Initially, it was my husband that gave me some money and I had some savings. I later started leasing some equipment. I love to lease because it keeps me on my toes as regards finances. The recent finance we got was a grant from the Federal Government through the You Win Platform.

    How many workers did you start with and how many do you have right now?

    I started with one – myself. I was the production manager, sales representative, marketing officer, purchasing manager and so on. We now have six permanent workers and four casual ones. We are to add four permanent workers and four casual workers under the You Win programme.

    What is the secret of your success?

    God and dedication to quality products and excellent services are the pillars of our business.

    You have been running a free programme for people who want to know about confectionery; what do you want to achieve with this?

    We are located in the boundary between Lagos and Ogun states. I saw a lot of women around their houses during the day idle. A lot of women I came in contact with often complained they didn’t have money. So I thought in my own little way I could help ignite their passion to become entrepreneurs. I have always believed that an investment in a woman is an investment in the nation.

    You are a beneficiary of the SMEs programme; how did you emerge as one of the beneficiaries?

    God was in our support. I got to know of the programme through a family friend. I put in, and with the support of my husband I successfully went through all the stages. The programme is transparent and professional.

    Have you ever felt like quitting business?

    Yes. There was a time I took up a job, but after two months, I knew I wasn’t meant for office work. Any time I went into office work, I would always come back to my business. At last, I resolved never to go back again.

    Would you have fared better in a job paid ?

    I don’t think so. I can’t imagine the routine lifestyles of people in paid jobs. My business gives me room for adventure.

    What are the necessary qualities you have to possess to do business in Nigeria?

    You must first be resilient. You must be focused, disciplined and be a person of integrity.

    How do you relax?

    I must confess I hardly have time to relax. People often beg me to slow down, but with a preferred future in mind, I have to keep moving. When the time for relaxation comes, I will know.

    Would you say your growing-up has something to do with your entrepreneurial acumen?

    Yes. I’m very restless. As a student at the Yaba College of Technology, l was trading. You know that ladies like clothes, so I cashed in and made good profits.

     

     

     

  • Unilever out with cooking TV show

    Unilever out with cooking TV show

    COMING from the stables of Unilever Nigeria Plc is a new cooking reality TV show tagged Knorr Taste Quest. Viewers can now follow the 13 episode culinary TV Show every weekend on local stations including AIT, Silverbird, Galaxy, E-Stars (Startimes) and OnTV.

    With a grand prize of a brand new car and N1 million and several other items the competition no doubt is bound to be stiff among the 12 contestants comprising eight females and four males.

    Similarly, the 1st runner-up will get N1m cash prize and kitchen equipment worth N300, 000 while the 2nd runner up will win N500, 000 and kitchen equipment worth N300, 000. Meanwhile, all 20 contestants would go home different kitchen equipment and could also win cash vouchers if they win any of the special tasks.

    According to organisers, over 6,000 entries where received from all parts of the country before they were finally pruned down to 24 at a rigorous screening exercise that held in Lagos out of which the 12 finalists emerged.

    Heading the jury is experienced Chef, Doctor Roberts who is joined by the duo of Gbubemi Fregene also known as Chef Fregz and Nsima Ogedi-Alakwe, Category Manager Savoury, Unilever Nigeria Plc.

    At an exclusive screening party that held last weekend, Managing Director, Unilever Nigeria Plc Mr. Thabo Mabe, revealed that the show will inspire many Nigerians.

    “It is all about creating the best cooking ideas and innovative recipes that you can find from any part of Nigeria. But more importantly, it is about how we can upgrade our cooking recipes to the highest level,” Mabe explained.

    One of the contestants, Aaron Bolarinwa, who studied Cell Biology and Genetics at University of Lagos (UNILAG) expressed his delight at being selected for the show. His words, “I run a catering company which grew from my hobby in cooking. But I want to be a celebrity Chef and I am confident Knorr Taste Quest will give me that platform”.

    Speaking on the quest, Nsima who is a member of the jury revealed that the show is not only informative but also of international standards. “We can only create a programme that brings out the best. What makes the show unique is the originality. The contestant doesn’t have any idea what shape the test will take and they use their own recipes. We are very positive that the show will have a great impact on Nigerians judging by the enthusiasm of audience at screening,” she said.