Unleashing Local Resources in Agribusiness

As more companies begin to look inwards for raw materials, Raheem Akingbolu, who recently participated in a tour of Agbeyewa Farms in Ekiti State, writes on how the multi billion naira agribusiness initiative can impact the economy

Things appear to be looking up for manufacturers of goods in the country. In a fresh move to bridge the gap following the fall in the value of naira, which has stressed raw materials importation, and in line with government calls on companies to look inwards for untapped resources, more manufacturers are beginning to source for raw material locally. Today, companies are yielding to the advice with many of them either cultivating their own raw materials or partnering with agricultural companies that have farms that can fill the gap.

At the last count, manufacturing giants like Nigerian Breweries, FrieslandCampina Wamco Plc, Nestle, PZ Wilmar; Dangote Group and Flour Mills of Nigeria, have shifted drastically to local inputs for their products. Others are; De-United Food, Chi Limited, Presco Oil, Okomu Oil, and BUA Group.

The establishment of Agbeyewa Farms, a privately owned multi billion naira agribusiness initiatives in Ekiti is coming in at the Nigeria is facing significant food security challenges, with nearly 25 million people at risk of hunger due to bandits/terrorists attacks on farmers, climate change, inflation, and rising food prices.

The Agric revolution, currently seated on about 5 thousand hectares of land in Ekiti State, could not have come at a better time when the country’s food insecurity is further exacerbated by factors such as widespread flooding in some parts of the country, which damaged over 676,000 hectares of farmland in 2022.

Aligning with the lofty vision of Ekiti State to boost Agricultural sector, the owner of Agbeyewa Farms, a subsidiary of Cavista Holding, has invested in Cassava farming in Ekiti especially due to its array of derivatives when processed. Currently, the farm is harvesting about 380 hectares, which would go into the market in the South West region and also other parts of Nigeria.

Speaking during a tour of the farm on the future goal for the agricultural initiative, the Executive Director of Agbeyewa Farms Limited, Mr Oscar Seyi Ayeleso said farm would establish the best agro-allied cassava processing plant in the whole of Africa. “And I will tell you that where you are seeing today, where you are today will soon become a cassava farming estate. We are growing 10,000 hectare and we have our agro-allied company here, okay? We will be processing so many varieties.

 “In fact, we are even going into some table food? We are going to produce semovita, noodles, we are going into spaghetti, all those chips, cake, and everything, and we are going to all of them. And by the time you see that, that product line is growing; we need housing facilities for our managers. We are constructing a facility for the field staff, as you are seeing there, that is the accommodation for all the field staff, and they won’t be going home again. We want to also have a facility for managers; we want to have a facility for directors.

“By the time you are having all of that, the bank will be approaching you, and we will have banks here. By the time you start all those estates, their children will want to go to school. We will establish school here, by the time the family will want to go for groceries, they will have a supermarket here. By the time people start coming in and seeing all of this, they say, ah come on, I want to sleep here, I want to sleep here and see some of the things, for two days, two days is not enough, I want to go now, but we have hotel here where you can lodge and stay and go around and everything.

“By the time we are doing that, we are creating a colony here, and that’s what we are going to. So, we are going to have a farming estate that has never been seen in the whole of Africa and we are liken that to Omnicane in Mauritius. That’s what we are liken Agbeyewa farms. So Agbeyewa is not an ordinary farm, it’s a revolution, it’s a movement. Agbeyewa is a movement and you will see in the next few years, that’s the dream of my chairman- John Olajide and we are walking to get to that dream and get it there, “he said.

Ayeleso said that the farm has invested a lot of money in cassava cultivation and presently harvesting about 380 hectares, saying, “if 380 hectares go into the market in the South West region and also in Nigeria, it means a lot of things because of the varieties of products, by-products that come out of cassava in terms of garri, fufu, starch, flour.”

“So we have so many customers who are coming here to buy our cassava for their agro-allied processing company and they are using our cassava in various varieties to actually process into fufu, starch, and flour. Now, the economy of any state has to come, or the GDP, the gross domestic product of any state, has to come from the local level. Okay? If we want to grow the GDP of any state, we have to start from the local level. What are the products and cash crops are they producing that will dovetail into enhancement of a state GDP and for there to national GDP and I can tell you that cassava is one of those cash crops that can contribute very immensely to the GDP, not only of local government, of the state, and also of the nation,” he added.

Ayeleso spoke further on how the Agbeyewa is helping to create employment and improve local economy. He said:  “You can see how many labourers who have been offered jobs, today people that are working in Agbeyewa farm are over 500. Our direct staff is over 200. We grew from five. We started from five staff to over 200. Now, if you see in the indirect labour that are in the farm today, some cutting stems, some harvesting cassava roots, some planting cassava, some doing ridges and everything, they are all about 400. 

“As of today, we have about 500 people working in this farm and you can imagine what has done to the local economy, to the family economy of such individuals who are working here. You can also see people who are also coming to establish their trade, food sellers; you have all manner of people who are coming to do all of these things. We are also improving the economy of their family, and by improving the economy of their family, we are also improving the economy of the local government.”

“Now, we have planted over 1,000 hectares this season and when that one begins to ripe for harvest, you can imagine how it will go into the aspect of the state economically in Ekiti state. This is going to be the largest cassava plantation I’ve ever seen in all of Ekiti state, and so part of western region. We are planning to do 3,000 hectares. We are close to about 4,500 now, but our target by next season is to do 5,000, and by 2026, we are targeting 20,000,” he said.

Speaking on how the vision that gave birth to the Agbeyewa Agric Revolution was consummated,  one of the farm’s board members and a traditional ruler, Oba Dr Sunday Aniyi of Erimope Ekiti, said the Agbeyewa Farm was an idea that came about around 2021 immediately after the COVID 19 pandemic during the administration of former Governor Fayemi. 

He said: “The chairman of Agbeyewa Farms, John Olajide, is from my community, and leadership of the community approached in 2021 on the possibility of investing in Ekiti.  There was also a meeting with the state government under Dr. Kayode Fayemi. So, it was like an investment meeting. After the meeting, we all toured Ekiti, went to Emure, Ise and everywhere where land could be available.”

“So, we came around this place, too. And finally, the government advised that they have an Agric processing zone around this corridor and that their intention is that big agricultural industries should concentrate around here, so that it is easy for infrastructure development and deployment, especially around the power corridor.” The monarch further stated.

With the promise of the management of Agbeyewa that the farm was conceptualised to become a major hub for raw materials, the future surely looks bright for many Nigerian manufacturing companies that will soon begin to partner the farm for sourcing raw materials.