Wastages Contribute to Nigeria’s Trillion Naira Food Import Bill

Over N635 billion was spent to import wheat, N365 billion on rice, N217 billion on sugar, and N97 billion on fish importation. PHL that occurs largely to the absence of viable storage and processing facilities are some of these challenges that have impoverished farmers and dampened their enthusiasm for farming. At present, 12 silos are distributed across the country, with a combined storage capacity of 300,000 tonnes for assorted grains, beans and garri, while 20 additional silos are being planned to further raise the joint storage capacity of the nation’s silos to 1.3 million tones. Ms Oluwatoyinbo underscored the necessity for effective storage of produce with the aid of refrigeration, noting however, that the poor electricity supply in the country limited such an option. A resort to solar energy to power such systems, she pointed out, would be too expensive for the average Nigerian farmers, stressing the necessity for the Federal Government to invest more in thermal and hydro-electricity. “The cheapest source of electricity today is still the national grid and it is unfortunate that we are where we are today in terms of power supply,” she said.

http://www.nigerianeye.com/2011/08/wastages-contribute-to-nigerias.html

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