By Steve Agbota
BEFORE oil was discovered in commercial quantity in Nigeria, cocoa was unarguably one of its major cash-crops that accounted for huge foreign exchange earnings. It also served as a major employer of labour across the nation back in the 80s. But today, all is not well with the Nigerian cocoa industry.
As global demand for chocolate is outpacing the rate of cocoa production, especially with extreme weather conditions, affecting cocoa production, Nigeria has become one of the few countries in Africa where the effects of the El Nino phenomenon have not been greatly felt. This opportunity should therefore be used well, as it can earn the country a whopping $3 billion per annum if the government encourages value addition in the sector.
However, this calls for intensified effort at boosting local production of cocoa for the country to bounce back to its glorious days when it was one of the highest foreign exchange earners. Such support becomes more critical now that the Federal Government is determined to diversify the economy from oil to non-oil sector.
Nigeria is currently the world’s fourth largest cocoa producer after Ivory Coast, Indonesia and Ghana and the third largest exporter, after Ivory Coast and Ghana, although the country used to be the largest producer of cocoa for decades.
Statistically, it has been revealed by industry watchers that global cocoa trade is worth $800 billion annually and Nigeria is not benefiting from this because of value addition despite being the world’s fourth largest producer of cocoa. Therefore, industry experts are of the opinion that for Nigeria reverse losing out year in, year out from the global money making from cocoa, government should encourage value addition by giving farmers extension services, and considering cocoa production and processing as a major step to enhance job opportunities and economic development.
Apart from increasing global demand for chocolate, cocoa products can be used for paste, butter, powder, butter oil, syrup, mulch, animal feed from cocoa husk, production of soft drinks and alcohol, potash from cocoa pod husk, jam and marmalade and cocoa liquor. There are huge demands for these products in America, United Kingdom, Canada, China and other European countries.
Speaking with Daily Sun recently, the Managing Director of Cocoa Products (Ile-Oluji) Limited, a processing company, Akin Olusuyi, said that Nigeria should go back to farming generally and also give special extension to farmers engaged in cash crops like cocoa and other farm produces, saying the future of Nigeria lies in agriculture like that of other countries.
He lamented: “Our problem is that we neglected agriculture in favour of oil. My point is that if Ghana can be producing close to 800,000 tonnes of cocoa in a year and the whole land of Ghana is not up to Ondo State in land mass; and if Ivory Coast can be producing over one million tonnes a year, I don’t see why Nigeria cannot be the biggest producer because we have the land.
“Cocoa can be grown in 22 states in Nigeria. It just needs the government to do the right thing by creating the enabling environment for people to return to the farm, including provision of infrastructure that would attract young graduates to farming. No graduate will go back to farm where there is no internet facility as at today.
“We need to look beyond oil and return to agriculture because cocoa is now gold. As I am talking to you, cocoa now sells for N1 million per tonne in Nigeria and this what 10,000 barrels of oil can generate, one tonne of cocoa can generate for Nigeria. If government is serious about cocoa, it should put policy in place that will encourage cocoa growing. The amount of money involved in global cocoa trade today is close to $800 billion a year and I don’t know how much of that comes to this nation.