Nigeria President,
Goodluck Jonathan, commissioned the Africa’s largest and of course state-of-the-art
Rice Mill owned by Olam International Limited in Nasarawa State. This
investment in Nigeria’s Agriculture by Olam has significantly contributed to the
achievement of Government Agricultural Transformation Agenda and Rice policy, indeed,
this will drastically reduce Nigeria dependence on foreign rice and ultimately
make Nigeria net exporter of rice.
Olam International Limited
is a leading agribusiness operating across the value chain in 65 countries. The integrated rice milling facility is
situated at the heart of Olam’s 6,000-hectare greenfield irrigated and
mechanised paddy farm, and will provide 36,000 metric tonnes (MT) of milled rice per
annum to the
domestic market, contributing
to the Federal
Government’s goal to improve
rice self-sufficiency. With 3,000
hectares already under
cultivation and a
further 3,000 hectares to
be developed in
2015, the farm
is expected to
harvest two crops
per annum with four varieties of high-yield rice developed
in partnership with the West African Rice Development
Association.
Together the
farm and the
mill are expected
to boost smallholder
rice production in the
region through a
‘nucleus and outgrower
farming model’. Surrounding rice-growing communities are
supported by Olam
with training, pre-finance,
agri-inputs and marketing linkages in order to improve their
paddy yields and realisations, which are then purchased by Olam at a fair
market price. Currently 3,000 farmers are engaged in the programme, with a target
of 16,000 by 2018. Ultimately, 20,000 smallholder farmers will supply 30-40% of
the mill’s capacity. The commercial
farm itself employs
up to 1,000
workers depending on seasonality, providing another source of
training in Good Agricultural Practices
(GAP). The model was highlighted
as a catalytic
innovation in African
agriculture by the
Rockefeller Foundation in 2013.
Venkataramani Srivathsan,
Olam’s Managing Director
for Africa and Middle East, commented: “This
mill, commissioned today
by President Goodluck
Ebele Jonathan,characterises three important
aspects of Olam’s
commitment to the
agricultural sector in Nigeria. Firstly, it demonstrates how
large-scale corporate farms can work hand in hand with smallholders to
help advance Nigeria’s
Agricultural Transformation Agenda
and generate rural prosperity
through local processing. Secondly, it underlines the country’s ability to grow
high quality, nutritious
rice that can
enhance domestic food
security by providing
an alternative to imports. Thirdly, as Olam kicks off its 25th
anniversary celebrations this month, this investment is a testament to our ongoing
commitment to Nigeria, the
country where Olam was founded.”
“Our goal
of making Nigeria
a net exporter
of rice will
be achieved faster by encouraging large commercial farms that will
complement our small-scale farmers.
Large mechanised rice farms like Olam’s 6,000-hectare farm will not only
boost food production but also provide significant opportunities for jobs in
rural areas. These mills are producing high quality local rice that meets
international standards and competes well with imported rice.” President
GoodLuck.
“Nigeria is driving a rice
policy that will turn it away from being a rice importing country to a major
rice exporter. The investment by Olam in a commercial rice farm and integrated
rice mill will help boost domestic production and milling of international
quality grade rice in Nigeria. This is a clear demonstration that our approach
of taking agriculture as a business, while enabling the private sector to drive
growth of the agriculture sector, is working.” Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, Minister
of Agriculture
“In 25 years, Olam is
proud to have been a part of Nigeria’s development of strong export supply
chains for world markets.
“Olam was one of the
first to export sesame from Nigeria – and now Nigeria is one of the world’s
biggest suppliers. Today, we hope that the success of our rice model will
kick-start domestic production in a
similar manner, unlocking the opportunity for businesses and smallholders
alike, and reducing Nigeria’s need to
import 1.9 million tonnes of rice each year.” Olam Nigeria Country Head, Mukul
Mathur,
Olam Nigeria employs
over 2,500 direct employees, 6,000 contract workers and sources from over 500,000
Nigerian rice, cocoa, cashew, sesame and cotton farmers. Olam’s businesses
range from wheat milling to manufacturing and distribution of tomato paste and dairy
drinks amongst others.
Olam