The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Food

  • Food crisis: States in anxious wait for FG’s grain allocations

    Food crisis: States in anxious wait for FG’s grain allocations

    • Agric ministry sources: Release will be immediate
    • NANS appeals to NLC, TUC to shelve proposed strike

    The 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) are eagerly awaiting the delivery of the 102,000 metric tons of grains pledged last week by President Bola Tinubu for the purpose of ameliorating the current high food prices.

    Officials of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security are working round the clock to make the food available as early as possible, The Nation gathered yesterday.

    The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) reached out to the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) yesterday, asking them to reconsider their plan to call a strike over the country’s economic situation.

    The students’ union said the interest of the nation must be paramount at the moment.

    The ministry will, in the first instance, release about 42,000 metric tons of maize, millet, garri, and other commodities in its strategic reserve for distribution to the states.

    A senior official of the ministry told The Nation on the phone yesterday that the matter was being treated with “utmost urgency” with a view to easing the suffering of the generality of Nigerians.

    But the sharing formula of the items was not available last night.

     “We are very sure that the release of 42,000mt of grains from the National Strategic Grain Reserve as well as release of 60,000mt of rice by the Rice Miller’s Association at a subsidised rate will be immediate,” the official said.

    He added: “The minister has given his word that we cannot waste time on the distribution, but he is in the best position to tell us when it will commence.

     “This is in response to the nation’s growing food crisis and the rising cost of commodities, and it has to be immediate.”

    The Director, National Strategic Grain Reserve, Engr. Sule Haruna, who was also contacted, said there were enough grains in reserve to be released as directed by the President.

    He said: “We are ready. Once we are given approval, we will commence and it will be done in a transparent way.”

    Information and National Orientation Minister, Mohammed Idris, said the President’s directive was part of the government’s short-term measure to address the high cost of food.

    Idris warned that the government would sanction hoarders of food items, noting that emergencies require emergency measures to ensure the availability of food to Nigerians.

     He also said the government would embark on importation to plug any shortfall that might be experienced after the release of the food items.

    On February 6, the presidential committee on emergency food intervention met at the Presidential Villa in Abuja over the rising cost of living in the country.

    NANS appeals to NLC, TUC to shelve proposed strike

    Reacting yesterday to the 14-day ultimatum given the Federal Government by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) to address the economic hardship and security challenge in the country, NANS appealed to the two bodies to suspend their proposed strike in the interest of the nation.

    National President of NANS, Pedro Obi, told reporters in Abeokuta that while the association shared in the pains Nigerians, especially the youth and students were experiencing over the current hardship, it was of the strong belief that the planned strike would worsen the situation in the country.

    The NANS president added that the labour unions had the right to make demands and embark on strike to drive home their points, but appealed for reconsideration of the decision.

    He urged them to take into consideration the potential impact on insecurity, economy and more importantly, the academic progress of students across the nation.

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    He said: “While recognising the importance of addressing labour-related concerns and advocating for workers’ rights, we kindly urge the labour unions to explore alternative means of dialogue and negotiation with the relevant authorities.

    “A strike, though a powerful tool, can lead to civil unrest and further worsen the security and economic situation of the country.

    “We believe that constructive dialogue and engagement can lead to mutually beneficial solutions without causing nationwide unrest.

    “Our plea is not to undermine the legitimacy of the concerns raised by the labour unions, but to emphasise the potential adverse effects a strike could have on all sectors of our economy.

    “We remain hopeful that a consensus can be reached through meaningful discussions, ensuring that the rights and well-being of both workers and students are considered in the pursuit of fair and just solutions,”

    Obi asked the Federal Government to fast track the process of implementing the new minimum wage, saying it would go a long way in addressing the plights of the people.

    The NLC and TUC on Thursday issued the ultimatum for government to implement the agreements reached on October 2 last year, following the removal of fuel subsidy.

    Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, said on Friday that government had no intention of reneging on the contents of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed with the two labour organisations, and urged them to continue demonstrating restraint in their decisions and actions as the government keep working to address the challenges currently faced by the nation.

  • Tip for 2024 food supplements treasure trove

    Tip for 2024 food supplements treasure trove

    For 30 years, a true friend and ally for radiant health.

    The headline above, SOGHURM BICOLOR, 2024 TRILLION DOLLAR BEAUTIFUL BRIDE, is all about JOBELYN,  the Nigerian herbal blood formula which has weathered 30 long years of intensive labouratory and clinical research to earn a well deserved entry in the Cancer Drug dictionary of the prestigious National  Cancer Institute of the United States. This should make proud Nigerian Traditional Medicine (NTM) and encourage doctors’ and patients’ interest in Jobelyn.

    I am priviledged to have been associated with Jobelyn in its 30 year history, from the unveiling in 1993 and the first newspaper report in 1994 through the various laboratory and clinical studies, including presentations at some Alternative Medicine conferences in Africa, and recommend that you read the news report mentioned above and also make Jobelyn a prime food supplement in your Herbal Medicine Box at home or in the office in 2024. 

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    Studies in Nigerian and foreign universities have shown jobelyn to support several therapies such as in HIV/AIDS, psychiatry, Anaemia, cancer, neuro degenerative diseases, post surgical conditions, arthritis, diabetes, inflammation etc. 

    American labouratory and university studies found Nigerian soghurm bicolor variety from which jobelyn is made to be the richest sources of two compounds in 3 DEOXYANTOCYANIDINS which are targeted to be the corner stones of the food of pharmaceutical industries of the future. These compounds are well endowed with four functions which are believed to be Erasers of all disease conditions…1) Anti inflammatory 2) Anti oxidant 3) Immune modulation and 4) chemo prevention

    The December 14, 2023 report in The Nation newspaper, SOGHURM BICOLOR, 2024 TRILLION DOLLAR BEAUTIFUL BRIDE, projects why, in 2024, plant medicine consumers world wide should find Jobelyn a wonderful friend and ally to make their health robust and radiant.

  • Cost of food, energy push inflation to 28.9%

    Cost of food, energy push inflation to 28.9%

    The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) yesterday said owing to the soaring cost of food, electricity, gas and others, inflation rate rose from 28.20% in November 2023 to 28.92% in December 28.92%.

    This was contained in its document titled: “Consumer Price Index December 2023,” which was release in Abuja.

    NBS said, “In December 2023, the headline inflation rate increased to 28.92% relative to the November 2023 headline inflation rate which was 28.20%.”

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    According to the data, in the period under review, food and non -alcoholic beverages contributed 1.18% to inflation rate.

    NBS also said housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuel accounted for 0.38%, while clothing and footwear contributed 0.17%, transport was responsible for 1.15%.

  • Food service providers protest rise in prices

    Food service providers protest rise in prices

    Association of Professional Food Service Providers (APFSPN) has protested the high cost of food.

      It said business had not been easy for them as they find it difficult to make profit.

    Carrying placards, they food urged the Federal Government to come to their aid.

     APFSPN President, Moni Osho, said prices of food should not be allowed to spiral because food is a basic need, just as shelter and clothing.

     She said the President Bola Tinubu administration should  reduce taxes on members and farmers; stop officials from arresting vehicles conveying food, and ensuring the preservation of food to avoid waste during harvest and transit to city markets.

     Osho also wants Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu and his colleagues to provide land to them for large scale farming and set up agencies reminiscent of control boards to monitor prices.

     The chief executive officer of Simply She Catering, said: ”Food prices have continued to rise daily. The inflation has deteriorated living conditions and reduced purchasing power due to the impact of removal of fuel  subsidy.”

    Read Also: ‘How Nigeria can address food insecurity’

    ‘’APFSPN members are protesting gradual extinction of their catering businesses caused by a persistent daily increase in food prices.”

    Osho said their survey  showed prices had been on rise for the last 12 months. 

    The food surveyed, the association said, were yam, rice, beans, palm oil, garri, wheat, meat, flour, noodles, sugar, and millet.

    Others were onion, maize, pepper, tomatoes, palm oil, vegetable oil, and sorghum.

    APFSPN Board of Trustees Chairperson, Mrs Morenike Okupe, pleaded with the government to come to their aid.

    She said their subsector contributes much to the economy. Public Relations Officer (PRO), APFSPN of Folake Oba-Kasumu, said: “One bag of rice has risen to N60,000 and has hit 17-year high as the food prices continue to soar.

    APFSPN appealed to the Federal Government ‘’to release reserves from the grain silos to curtail the price of commodities, such as grains.”

  • Achieving food security through research, development

    Achieving food security through research, development

    • By Oladele Oladipupo

    Nigeria, the largest economy in Africa has a total land area of 910,770 sq. km with an estimated population of 200million people. The country is blessed with both human and mineral resources. Not only that, it also has favourable climate, good weather condition, water resources and arable lands. It is a paradox that with all of these resources bestowed upon the nation, many people still die of starvation.

    The stark reality is that majority of Nigerians cannot afford three square meals a day. Every day, the prices of foodstuffs keep increasing at an astronomical rate; at the same time, our local currency has been devalued making its purchasing power to be low. It is no longer news that our country is currently experiencing food crisis.

    Recall that successive administrations had, at one time or the other, embarked on some laudable agricultural initiatives, all in an attempt to achieve food security in the country. These include but not limited to the following: establishment of 12 River Basin Development Authorities (RBDAS) in all the six geopolitical zones, establishment of the Directorate of Foods, Roads and Rural Infrastructures (DFRRI) in all the 774 Local Government Areas, operation Green Revolution and Operation Feed the Nation. However, the success of these laudable programs was hindered due to poor co-ordination, lack of political will, policy somersault and lack of involvement of beneficiaries in project design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation.

    Today, our food security is being threatened by the following challenges namely: climate change, urbanization, population explosion, flood, insecurity and farmers/herders clashes to mention but just a few. The question now is: what can our nation do to achieve food security?

    The last two decades have proved that Research and Development can play a significant role in achieving food security. There is a lot of quality research in the country that is not finding its way into industries. Recall that during the administration of former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, cassava bread was produced. Some scientists carried out a research and came up with the idea of mixing cassava flour with wheat flour unfortunately, the idea was jettisoned along the line due to lack of political will. This idea could have saved the country substantial amount of foreign exchange.

    Ukraine government supplies the rest of the world with wheat unfortunately, there is a war going on between Ukraine and Russia. Wheat is now very expensive; not only that but also difficult to come by. It is regrettable to say that African leaders do not pay much attention to Research and Development. Recall that some two decades ago, there was Abuja Declaration that required African leaders to invest two percent of their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Research and Development but this has never happened in Nigeria. It is also crucial to remember that UNESCO once recommended that 26% of our annual budget be allocated to the education sector but unfortunately, this recommendation has not been implemented over the years.

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    My concern is that we are not getting our priorities right. We do prefer to waste our resources on things that are irrelevant rather than expending it on education. It is imperative that we invest heavily in research and development if we are to achieve food security. For instance, non-availability of data has been a serious challenge in this country. There is need for us to generate data on soil quality, water quality, rainfall pattern, weather condition and data on application and distribution of fertilizers. This is to enable us make informed decisions.

    Our universities are supposed to generate credible data for policy makers. Unfortunately, our public universities are poorly funded; not only that, they do not have well equipped functional laboratories where they could carry out meaningful research. Apart from the universities, there are international research organizations that carry out research on tropical crops. These include the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture in Ibadan (IITA), the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) in Rome and the United Nations Food Program in Geneva. Through research, scientists have been able to produce varieties of corns, tomatoes, rice and wheat through the application of genetic engineering.

    It is also important to mention here that most of the raw materials that are being employed in our various industries are products of research. For instance, “Ethanol” which is produced from cassava and corn is being used as raw materials in most of the industries as well research laboratories as “solvent”. There are quite a lot of research activities that are being carried out at the IITA where scientists are busy working on various tropical crops like cassava, yam and potatoes.

    In addition, scientists are also carrying out research on various species of oil palm seedlings at the Nigerian Institute for Oil Palm Research (NIIFOR) in Benin City, Edo State. There is also Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN) in Ibadan.

    In most of the advanced countries, Research and Development is accorded top priority while well-off individuals often make substantial donation to their alma mater for research but in Africa, the reverse is the case. Most of our rich men and women do not invest in research. African leaders too have not been doing well as far as investing their resources in research. Most of the time, they wait for foreign aid but they should understand that developed countries do have their challenges.

    It is now time for African leaders to pay attention to research innovations from our universities. I would like to implore our African leaders to ensure that the two percent GDP Abuja declaration which is required to be invested in Research and Development is implemented without further delay. I would also like to suggest that the African Union should consider setting up a Regional Research and Development Centre in Addis – Ababa, Ethiopia.

    •Oladipupo writes via oladeleoladipupo@gmail.com

  • Firm, agency partner on food distribution to needy

    Firm, agency partner on food distribution to needy

    A financial services provider, 9 Payment Service Bank (9PSB) and the Lagos Food Bank Initiative(LFBI) have partnered to give curated food boxes to the elderly and widows.

     The packs will be distributed in Isolo, Alimosho, Mushin, and Lagos Island as part of activities to commemorate the bank’s third anniversary.

     9PSB had presented educational supplies to two primary schools in Kano and gave food and relief supplies to physically challenged pupils in Abuja.

    The partnership is aimed at providing families experiencing food insecurity with carefully selected food boxes filled with necessities and staple foods.

     The firm said the programme is consistent with its corporate social responsibility, community engagement and key values.

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     Chief Executive Officer, Branka Mracajac, speaking during the outreach, said: ““In our quest to stay committed to driving financial inclusion by collaborating and providing innovative and tailor-made financial products and services to the underserved on our mission to bank9ja, our team deemed it fit not to limit the anniversary celebration to an internal affair but to also reach out to the vulnerable in the society, which has birthed the outreach with LFBI.”

     Executive Director of the Lagos Food Bank Initiative (LFBI), Micheal Sunbola, while felicitating with 9PSB on its third anniversary, thanked the bank for the partnership and highlighted the importance of such in addressing hunger, especially in the light of the present economic realities.

     He commended 9PSB for the initiative and expressed the desire for more areas of collaboration in the future.

     Dedicated to combating hunger and malnutrition in Lagos State, Lagos Food Bank Initiative is a non-profit organisation. Through various programmes, the charity feeds underprivileged communities and supports their nutrition.

     Over 300 elderly, widows and physically challenged individuals benefitted from the outreach, receiving food boxes, cash gifts and educational materials.

  • Inflation rises on soaring food, energy prices

    Inflation rises on soaring food, energy prices

    Nigerians are spending more to buy basic living items, as inflation continues to erode disposable incomes, savings and investments.

    Economic intelligence reports by many economic and finance firms surveyed yesterday by The Nation indicated that continuing increases in costs of basic foods, logistics, energy and other living items have pushed up inflation.

    Ahead of the release of the October inflation report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), independent analysts’ reports were unanimous that headline inflation rate would rise for the tenth consecutive month.

    The reports indicated that inflation rate may rise by more than 110 basis points to more than 27.5 per cent for October.

     The Consumer Price Index (CPI), otherwise known as inflation rate, had risen for the ninth consecutive month from 25.80 per cent in August to 26.72 per cent in September.

    Afrinvest West said it expected inflation rate to rise by 102 basis points to 27.9 per cent in October.

    Analysts noted that despite estimation of a modest boost to food supply due to the ongoing green harvest, the combined effect of low-base year and rising transportation costs pose significant risks to food inflation.

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    They said that material depreciation of the foreign exchange (forex) rate during the month coupled with the high price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and Diesel (AGO) were estimated to have further strained the core basket.

    Cordros Capital said it expected downside risks to continuing moderating food supplies, further fueling inflation.

    It said: “We expect food prices to temper in October due to the impact of the primary harvest season, although the downside risks that could limit food supplies remain intact. At the same time, we see no respite yet for the non-food inflation.

    “Overall, we see a 1.90 per cent month-on-month headline inflation in October, translating to an 83 basis points increase in the year-on-year inflation rate to 27.54 per cent.”

    Analysts at Arthur Steven Asset Management explained that the key drags to inflation remain largely on the supply side, including illiquidity of forex, dependency on imported raw materials, continued currency depreciation, and insecurity in the food producing region.

    Afrinvest noted that taming the spiralling inflation scourge would require a simultaneous deployment of harmonised supply and demand side strategies.

    “On the demand side, the CBN under its new management team must rein in the growth of money supply – M3 grew 40.1 per cent annualised in September compared to the annualised real output growth of about 2.5 per cent in the same period. The lag effect of robust liquidity management should be positive for taming inflation. Also, market rates must be allowed to clear at a level high enough to incentivise investment and savings in a high inflation-battered environment.

    “In addition, fiscal spending must be more tilted towards value-creating capital spending as against consumption-focused recurrent needs. On the supply side, the quick win would be to ease restrictions on food imports in the form of lesser tariffs while a more long-term approach would be to tackle the structural issues that affect food supply, especially security, transportation, and logistics,” Afrinvest stated.

  • Firms partner on food, creamery delivery

    Firms partner on food, creamery delivery

    Home delivery is fast becoming a booming enterprise with the increasing deployment of technology, Chief Executive Officer of Eat’N’Go Africa, Mr. Patrick McMicheal, has said.

     According to him, customer satisfaction is now the core of the home delivery sector.

     He spoke at a briefing to announce a partnership with Chowdeck, an online food and grocery delivery service.

     Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Chowdeck, Femi Aluko, welcomed the partnership with Eat ‘N’ Go Africa, the master franchisee of Cold Stone Creamery and Pinkberry Gourmet Yogurt.

    “We welcome Eat N’ Go into our delivery service ecosystem as a new restaurant partner.

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     “We will work with Eat N’ Go to provide the delicious, creamy ice cream and frozen yoghurt through Cold Stone Creamery, and Pinkberry Gourmet Yogurt, to dairy-loving Nigerians across the country,” he said.

     According to him, Chowdeck successfully delivers hundreds of thousands of orders monthly.

     “Customers of Chowdeck can now order from over 40 stores, with more to be onboarded in the following weeks,” Aluko said.

     McMicheal added: “The need to always be in front of the innovation regarding delivery technology has always been an important aspect of Eat’N’Go’s mission.

  • Ilupeju CDA shares food packs to 200 residents

    Ilupeju CDA shares food packs to 200 residents

    The Ilupeju Central Community Development Association (CDA) in Odi-Olowo/Ojuwoye Local Council Development Area of Lagos has distributed palliatives to over 200 residents.

    Its Chairman, Mr. Kole Abe, in an interview with The Nation, said the gesture was to complement the efforts of the Lagos State Government and Odi-Olowo/Ojuwoye LCDA.

    Abe stated that the bulk of the food items distributed came from the local government.

    He said the CDA decided to add to the items to reach a larger number of beneficiaries.

    He said: “The local government gave out foodstuff to all the CDAs for the most vulnerable people in our communities. But every CDA is peculiar; in our CDA, we went around, we went around street by street, house by house and took a censor. We found out that there were a lot more people that deserved it. So we decided to be a bit creative. We increased the quantities within ourselves to cater for the extra and break them down into quantities. We went beyond the prescribed 75 people to over 200 people.”

    Abe, who was recently sworn in as the CDA chairman, and received certificate from Chairman of the council Rasaq Ajala, said it was wrong to assume that some people don’t deserve palliative because they live in “rich areas.”

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    “It is very wrong because food and hunger are very universal. That’s one thing I found out from going on the streets. I went on the streets and interviewed people. We took their names, their phone numbers ahead of time. This is about a month before the distribution.

    “We talked to them and asked of their challenges and needs. Some of them thought we were going to give them a loan. For instance you have drivers who can’t feed their family members. We have a lot of people who are doing nothing and are just hungry every day. So we had a mix of that and of course, there are a lot of the privileged people who would also bring out their dependents. So they will tell us to take care of their family members or domestic helps because they have a lot of people depending on them. So some people generally need a little bit of help. The process of giving was very rewarding,” he said.

  • Food union calls for more collaboration with NB management

    Food union calls for more collaboration with NB management

    The National Union of Food Beverage and Tobacco Employees (NUFBTE) has called on management of Nigerian Breweries to sustain the cordial relationship that has long been in existence between the union and the organisation.

    The union President , Comrade Garba Ibrahim who stated this when he received some top management of the company at the NUFBTE National Secretariat, Food Labour House in Dopemu said the organisation has been a pillar of support to the union over the years, adding that there is need to take the collaboration to another level.

    Comrade Garba while emphasising on the need for more collaboration promised the team that the union will ensure more peaceful co-existence with the management of Nigeria Breweries.

    “A house that we built together must not be allowed to be destroyed let’s see the Union as partners in progress, we would keep canvassing for more productivity on the part of our members,”Garba said.

    According to the NUFBTE President , the issue of training of their members is sacrosanct saying that the union is in collaboration with the Michael Imodu Labour Institutes for Union member to be in tandem with the best international practices.

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    He further disclosed that in the next few weeks, the union will commence training of officer from units, branches, States Chairmen and Secretaries.

    The General Secretary of the union, Comrade Mike Olanrewaju also corroborated the issue of training and re-training of their members.

     “Now that our branches and states elections have come and gone, we are imploring the management to give priority attention to training of our members.”

    “We need each other, we need to partner with you without Peace and Cordial relationship there can never be appropriate results, We assure you of our fraternity and solidarity at every opportunity.”

    The Deputy President of the union, Comrade Sylvester Eterigho commended the management for their visit and promised that the union will play by the rules that guides employers/employees relationship.

    In response, the Human Resources Director of Nigerian Breweries, Mrs Grace Omo-Lamai gave kudos to the leadership of the union for demonstrating high level of maturity during the branch election held at the company stressing that their maturity prevented crisis.

    “We promised your leadership that our management will continue to maintain peace full co-existence with the union, ” she said.