Nigeria would require about $500 million worth of palm oil to meet local demand for the commodity, the Oil Palm Growers Association of Nigeria has said.
Joe Onyiuke, national president of the association who made this known during a town hall meeting in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital said that for the gap to be bridged, palm oil producers would need to strategize at both production and organisation to attract necessary funding needed for increased production.
Onyuike expressed regret that palm oil which remains a major component for the production of many items has been left in the hands of the elderly leading to big production and supply gaps even as outdated processing methods are most times deployed in the industry..
The president said the war in Europe has also forced major palm oil producing countries of Malaysia and Indonesia to limit their export capacities with Nigeria unable to attend to increasing export requests since production levels have stagnated overtime.
“It is so bad that Nigeria does not even have the capacity to export palm oil again and the local demand gap is about $500 million and that is why OPGAN has taken it upon itself to organise members properly and so if we are able to galvanise their strength.
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“Oil Palm affects our lives everywhere, especially in the food industry. Without palm oil you can’t have your Noodles, pasta, soap,margarine, mayonnaise, chocolate, toothpaste and so on in the food industry oil palm is the key because more than 40 items are produced from it and so when you talk about food security in the world oil palm remain key.
“Crude oil has failed Nigeria. Oil palm will return Nigeria to the prosperity of the past. We are lucky to have the Nigerian Institute for Oil Palm Research, NIFOR, and they are there to help us. So we need to go back to the drawing board,’’ ee explained.
He urged members of the association to form clusters and cooperatives for easy access to loans and assured that the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, loan facility for members would be ready soon for those able to meet the requirements and conditions stipulated by the Apex Bank.
Poor funding and proliferation of unorganised smallholder farms and low participation of youths according to Onyiuke remained a major constraint to increasing production levels but assured members of a ready and willing market for their produce and a surge in price of the commodity as enough incentive for them to increase efforts.
Onyiuke appealed to local government coordinators on the need for increased mobilisation for new members and said the association has initiated moves to float a micro finance bank and institute a health insurance policy for them while arrangements have been concluded for special loans for women and youth farmers in the association.
He pointed out that the over 200,000 member association have been invigorated for improved business processes while efforts are being made to add more to the 250,000 hectares of plantation land owned by OPGAN members nationwide.
While charging members to increase their collaboration with NIFOR, a senior official of the institute Dr Solomon warned of the prevalence of saboteurs who decieve farmers with fake NIFOR seedlings and fruits.
Solomon regretted that most plantations in the country have become very outdated and old and would need systematic replanting while processing needs to be updated and mordernised for optimum result and increased profitability.
Onukak Afahaene, State chairman of OPGAN, who urged members to key into the vision of the Onyiuke led OPGAN expressed joy that the Federal Government has realised the need for increased oil palm production and has renewed interest in increasing the capacities of oil palm growers in the country.
