A firm known as Davidorlah Nigeria Limited has expressed the determination to make Nigeria the highest producer and exporter of pineapple in the world by empowering 50,000 Nigerian farmers with 50,000 hectares of land.
The company said the initiative will particularly target young Nigerians who have a passion for agriculture and have studied the field. It said they would be offered comprehensive training and all the necessary resources to succeed as pineapple farmers as Davidorlah has committed to off-take their produce at any given time.
The Chief Executive Officer of Davidorlah Nigeria Limited, Oluwasegun Alabi who stated these at a press conference in Abuja on Monday, said going by the Food and Agriculture Organization Corporate Statistics Database, Nigeria is currently the 8th largest producer of pineapples in the world with estimated total of
1,607,200 metric tons per annum.
He said by comparison, Ghana ranks 13th with estimated total of 678,079 metric tons per annum, and Benin Republic is 16th with estimated total of 472,514 metric tons per annum but it was amazing how the countries produce is less than what Nigeria produces annually and yet Nigeria still imports pineapple from them because its produce is 50% less than her consumption.
Alabi said pineapple was the 5th most consumed fruit in the world, and it holds a unique position as one of the luxury produce items in the global market and the demand for pineapples consistently exceeds the supply, making it a highly lucrative crop.
He said to address the challenges of pineapple farming such as lack of quality control, low market presence, limited processing facilities, lack of financing and technology, the company has fashioned out measures to boost the crop’s protection.
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