Huge potential for the U.S. red meat in Nigeria, despite export obstacles

In recent years, the U.S. meat industry has made inroads into Africa but never Nigeria, which has been closed to U.S. beef and pork. But USDA recently announced a partial opening with Nigeria now accepting sausages and similar processed products. Africa Representative Matt Copeland says Nigeria has enormous potential but cautions exporters about potential difficulties in the market. "I can't explain how big Nigeria actually is, if they kick in demand wise. It's wonderful to have this massive whale as a trading partner. Obviously, if the oil price is good, Nigeria can be the biggest economy on the continent. Certainly, it's the most populous country by a long way and so we want to make sure we know all of the importers well, and we want to make sure that the big importers that are gearing very well with the retail environment there, that we are speaking with them and with the retailers to make sure as soon as it opens properly, that we can leverage promotions," Copeland says. ...