Agriculture with Jimoh

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr Audu Ogbeh, on Tuesday said that the country would start processing its raw cashew nuts for export by 2019. Ogbeh made this known at the maiden edition of the 2017 First Bank Agric Expo in Lagos. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the expo is tagged: Reinventing Agriculture for Sustainable National Development. According to him, the current worth of a tonne of roasted or processed cashew nut for export is $10,000 while the raw cashew nut is sold for $1,200. He said it would be better to process the nuts for export instead of exporting raw cashew nuts in order to benefit from the high cost of cashew nuts. “So in the next two years we will no longer export raw cashew nuts, but roast the cashew nuts for export. “If we produce a tonne of roasted cashew it will be sold at the international price of $10,000, whereas a tone of raw cashew nuts sells for $1,200,” he said. Ogbeh also said ...

Nigeria will attain 500,000 metric tons production of cashew nuts within four years using mechanised farming and product standardisation plan being put in place by the government and private investors. Mr Stephen Ahiaba, Managing Director, St. Ahiaba Global Resources, made the disclosure at a meeting of Kogi Agricultural Vision Group (AVG) and the Agricultural Innovative Group (AIG) on Tuesday in Lokoja. Ahiaba said at the meeting organised by organised Synergos Nigeria that the country’s small holder farmers were currently producing 60,000 metric tons annually. He said that the level was going to change with the planned mechanisation and market information available to the farmers now. “With the market information and negotiation done between 2014 and 2016, we need to upscale production now that agriculture is business if mechanised. “This will increase production of cashew nuts to 500,000 metric tons in the next four years,’’ he said. He said that h...

The Head, Corporate Affairs, Harmony Holdings Limited, Mr Kayode Aremu, has said that the Kwara State cashew processing factory, Ogbondoroko in Ilorin East Local Government Area would be completed in March. Aremu told newsmen on Thursday that after the completion of the factory’s renovation and expansion, it is expected to provide jobs for 600 youths in the state. ”Work is at advanced stage at the factory, and our team was recently on a tour of the site. ”In two months time, the renovation and expansion of the factory would have been completed and it is expected to provide jobs for at least 600 youths in the state,” Aremu said. Harmony Holdings Limited is the Kwara Government owned company in charge of the state government’s firms.

The National Cashew Association of Nigeria (NCAN) said that it expected early harvest of cashew in this year as most of the trees were already flowering and ready for fruiting. The association’s Spokesperson, Mr Sotonye Anga, who disclosed this in  in Lagos, said  that this was observed after a nationwide tour of some cashew producing states including Kwara and Abia. Anga said  that most cashew trees were doing “very well’’, saying it was a sign of a bumper harvest for farmers in 2017. “We are very pleased at the moment with what we have seen of cashew trees in most states where we have cashew plantations because they are doing very well. “Most of the trees are already flowering and getting ready for fruiting, which is a good sign for 2017 harvest. “From our observation during a nationwide tour of cashew trees as far as we can see, 2017 cashew harvest for Nigeria will be early,“ Anga said. The spokesperson added  that farmers were a...