An agricultural expert, Mr. Tajudeen Ajisefini, has said that most food products grown in Nigeria are not exportable due to a lack of traceability systems needed to ensure they are safe and meet international quality standards.
Ajisefini, the Managing Director of Enterprise Grooming Institute (EGI), stated this in an interview with reporters on Wednesday in Ilorin.
He explained that before accepting imports, countries want to be able to track a food product throughout its production and supply chain to determine its safety and whether it meets the required standards.
According to him, importing countries want to know who grew the product, where it was grown, the fertilizers and pesticides used, and how it was processed, stored, and transported.
“Most Nigerian farmers operate on a small scale and often do not keep detailed production records. They also use inorganic pesticides and fertilizers.
“To cap it all, they sell their produce through several middlemen.
“In order to address this challenge, we train our students at EGI on the formulation of organic pesticides and organic fertilizers using natural materials such as neem leaves and rice husks,” he said.
Ajisefini called for increased awareness of the production and use of organic fertilizers and pesticides to improve the acceptance of Nigerian agricultural produce in international markets.
