Orange is a universal fruit that is unique in nature because it has essential vitamins vital for body growth. Its a sweet juicy fruit which belongs to the family of citrus, known as Rutaceae. It is a very rich source of vitamin C, among other nutrients.
The global annual orange consumption reached 75 million tonnes some years ago. Oranges are generally eaten fresh. They are peeled and can be split into segments. Orange has a lot of health benefits and supports digestion. The juice from the ripe fruits are good appetizers, for healthy teeth, bones and gums. Its also known to promote healing of wounds and sores.
Due to its benefits, orange and its by-products remain in constant demand all year round. This leaves an open window for distribution and sales worldwide, especially to those areas where it is scarcely grown.
Hence, any business in relation to orange has a ready-made consumer market. As such, orange farming is a lucrative venture that gives quick returns on investment and it doesn’t cost much to start.
In Nigeria, states such as: Benue, Nasarawa, Kogi, Osun, Ogun, Ebonyi, Kaduna, Taraba, Ekiti, Imo, Kwara, Edo and Delta, are notorious for orange farming.
Orange farming generally involves the cultivation of orange. It however also involves getting suitable soil for planting orange seeds. One can be applying fertilisers/manures while harvesting the mature orange fruits.
Speaking with me, an Edo State-based orange farmer, Mrs. Theresa Edaki, says an investor in orange farming needs patience because orange trees may take a couple of years to grow and mature.
According to her, orange farming usually attracts buyers with little effort or advertisement. It sells itself as buyers often come to the farm to buy a tree for that particular period and harvest the fruits when ripe.
Profitability
It is easier to make your first million Naira from orange farming in the first year the tree starts bearing fruits.
“One can see how profitable orange plantation is. Let us assume that we sell each orange for N10 only while on the tree, with each tree assumably bearing 300 oranges or even more. Then, one hectare will contain at least 200 trees of citrus. This translates to about N600,000 or can even be more. If you have two hectares, you will have made N1.2million and this can continue annually for 50 years,” she says.
Thus a farmer can make high gains financially, depending on how large the orange plantation farm is. An orange tree can take five years to mature and it can stay alive and yield fruits for about 50 years.
