Yemi Osinbajo, vice president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, recently commissioned the 5,000 tonnes per year FoodPro Limited cashew processing factory in Ilorin, Kwara State.
Osinbajo, while speaking after a guided tour of the plant, was impressed by the factory and the company’s commitment to adhere to global standards. He expressed this administration’s resolve to support the private sector with policies that would aid local businesses.
Ayo Olajiga, the co-founder/CEO of FoodPro Limited, guided the vice president on a tour of the factory showing him different stages of the cashew processing– from sizing and boiling, shelling and scooping, to drying and peeling and finally grading and packaging.
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Olajiga said, “Through domestic processing of raw cashew nuts, we have created more than 400 direct jobs and several thousand indirect jobs for farmers, vendors, suppliers and artisans who form the heartbeat of FoodPro’s value chain. With 90 percent of FoodPro’s employees being women, we are humbled by the role we play in impacting communities and improving economic and social development conditions in our host community.”
FoodPro says it is grateful to the Federal Government of Nigeria acting through its agencies– the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) and Bank of Industry (BOI)–both housed under the Federal Ministry of Industry of Trade and Investment (FMITI).
Over the years, NEPC under the leadership of Olusegun Awolowo has worked relentlessly to help FoodPro gain valuable market access via local and international trade shows in Vietnam, the United Arab Emirates and the United States of America, the company says.
“In addition, the NEPC, from time to time, has provided us with export related training. The BOI provided the funding used to acquire our machinery and continue to support our efforts to effectively operate the factory,” the company states.
FoodPro Limited has been in operation since 2013 and recently ramped up its capacity from 1,000 to 5,000 tonnes of raw cashew nuts per annum, making it the largest locally owned cashew processing company in Nigeria. In addition, FoodPro’s factory is the only one certified by the African Cashew Alliance for Food Safety and Quality, according to the firm.
The company unveiled its latest addition to the FoodPro product range GoNutz, its range of flavoured cashews.
In the near future the company plans to double its operating capacity further to 10,000 tonnes, commence export of packaged and branded goods, including existing brands Lion Cashew and Go Nutz as well as a range of additional products that are currently in the development phase.
Kelechi Ewuzie
