Export Council develops strategy to boost cocoa production in Ondo

Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC) in Ondo State has developed strategy to increase cocoa production in the state as part of efforts to ensure that Nigeria ranks among the best producers and exporters of cocoa across the globe.


Rufus Durotoye, Head of the NEPC in Ondo State, disclosed this to newsmen in Akure, the Ondo State capital, recently. He said apart from cocoa, 13 other National Strategic Export Products (NSEP) have been targeted by the NEPC as alternatives to crude oil to shore up the country’s foreign exchange earnings.

Durotoye said the council had met with stakeholders across the 16 cocoa producing local government areas of the state, saying that cocoa farmers in the state have expressed their readiness to work with the council.

He said “the mandate given to us is to move the quantity of cocoa production from the current 240,000 metric tonnes to 400,000 metric tonnes within the next five years and as a product specialist we must put in our best to achieve this target.

He commended the traditional ruler of Ile Oluji for his support to the council in its vision to increase the quantity and quality of cocoa in the state.

“We are working with the traditional ruler of Ile Oluji who has made available about 200,000 seedlings of cocoa to farmers in his community freely.

“We have been moving round the state to educate and encourage farmers on how they can boost their production and increase their income.”

He said ” apart from this, we have visited some of the local government like Irele,  Ondo East,  Okitipupa local government areas. We have also been able to meet with the Senate of the Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko, because the school has a faculty of agriculture with special interest in cocoa production and they already have their nursery and I believe this help in the area of increasing our production.


“When we are talking of expanding our cocoa production, we must look at it from the grassroots and we must think of what to do with the present cocoa we are having and how to improve the quality.”

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