The rise of the exportation of cashew nuts has been attributed to an increased awareness of the potentials of the exportation of the products, as stated by the Managing Director of the Lagos Commodities and Futures Exchange (LCFE), Akin Akeredolu-Ale.
He said that cashew business in Nigeria had mostly smallholder farmers of about 25,000, “with an average cultivated area of 325,000 hectares, local processing industry is growing gradually while there is a significant rise in export due to increased awareness of the export potential and processing opportunities.”
Akeredolu-Ale said this at the listing of the N5 billion cashew contract of an investment company, Agvest Limited, on the Lagos Commodities and Futures Exchange (LCFE).
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Explaining the company’s decision to list its cashew nut contracts on the LCFE, the Managing Director of Agvest, Olabode Abikoye, said that it aligned with the company’s goal to “support the government’s drive to generate foreign exchange.
“We have 210 hectares of land as a plantation in Iwo, Oyo State and we are working closely with Oyo State Investment and Public Partnership Agency (OYSIPA) to activate our plan.”
Abikoye added, “As a listed product, our cashew shall always meet international standards as prescribed by the International Standard Organisation (ISO), which requires good temperature, moisture level and grade.
“Many stakeholders in the commodities value chain in Nigeria operate in silos. One of our company’s functions is to integrate the stakeholders in the value chain.”
