Onion farmers lament poor gov’t support to boost export

The National Association of Onion Producers, Processors and Marketers of Nigeria has decried what it called the lack of support by government in attracting foreign markets to boost export of the commodity.  The national chairman of the association, Alhaji Isa Mai Tasamu Binji Sokoto, who made the call in Zaria, described Nigerian onion as one […]

The National Association of Onion Producers, Processors and Marketers of Nigeria has decried what it called the lack of support by government in attracting foreign markets to boost export of the commodity. 

The national chairman of the association, Alhaji Isa Mai Tasamu Binji Sokoto, who made the call in Zaria, described Nigerian onion as one of the best in the world, saying it can compete favourably at the international market. 

Binji Sokoto expressed concern over “government’s neglect” in boosting the commodity through the provision of farm implements and soft loans for farmers to maximize production. 

The chairman, who was represented by the Kaduna State chairman of the association, Sani Ismail Kargi, explained that Nigeria could currently boast of producing 1,000 tons of the product while the country’s demand is 2,800 tons annually. 

He said at the moment, India has requested the supply of 1,000 powdered onion from Nigeria but that the farmers are unable to meet up with the demand due to shortage in production. 

He further said Ghana and Niger Republic depended largely on Nigerian onions to process the commodity into other commercial products. 

“In Niger, marketers buy our onion and process it to make chocolate, juice, powder and Maggi cubes among other things. It is also unfortunate that in Ghana, when they purchase our onion, they re-bag it and export it to other countries tagging it as “Ghana Onion.” 

He said in Nigeria, there is no single machine that can process onion into any product for exportation.