Investigation: Government’s inaction, failed interventions perpetuate Nigeria’s post-harvest losses (III)

Published 2024년 8월 15일

Tridge summary

Nigeria faces significant post-harvest losses in its orange production, with an estimated half of the crop wasted due to poor infrastructure and lack of processing facilities. Despite producing 4.2 million tonnes of oranges in 2022, the country spent $5.1 million importing citrus fruits. The situation is particularly severe in Benue State, which accounts for most of the country's orange production. The abandonment of a fruit processing plant by Transnational Corporation of Nigeria due to lack of government protection for local manufacturers further exacerbates the issue. ActionAid and scholars recommend investments in post-harvest research, road infrastructure, and small-scale processing and storage facilities to mitigate these losses. The Akwa Ibom State government is already implementing these measures, including training farmers on good agronomic practices and developing infrastructure for timely evacuation of farm produce.

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Original content

By Oladeinde Olawoyin, Ronald Adamolekun, Abdulkareem Mojeed, Ntiedo Ekott This is the third part in our series on post-harvest losses in Nigeria. Read the first part here and the second part here. “You will see for yourself when you get there,” Veronica Igbana, the director of Agricultural Extension and Risk Management, Benue State Bureau of Agricultural Development and Management, said after a conversation with PREMIUM TIMES in the presence of her colleagues in her Makurdi office in February. Earlier on, her colleague Timothy Atser remarked, “If you just go to my local government, you will begin to cry. You will see farmers harvesting their oranges and pouring them away because they want new ones to grow because no one is to buy and people will come and price it at N1000 per bag.” Nigeria’s orange production touched 4.2 million tonnes in 2022, the same year it spent $5.1 million importing citrus fruits. Benue State produces more oranges than any other state in the country. Along ...

Source: Premiumtimesng