Fakoyejo Olalekan
About $500 million was made from the exportation of cocoa by Nigerian farmers last year, the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) has revealed, in a bid to encourage more harvest.
The council’s trade promotion advisor, Anthony Ajuruchi, said the demand for the commodity is high globally, most especially among several developed and developing countries.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelPrime Business Africa understands that while Nigeria made $500 million from the exportation of cocoa, the global cocoa market is estimated to worth about $12 billion.
This means the country’s farmers have barely scratched the surface of the revenue potential cocoa has, and can grow their earnings individually or collectively by increasing production level.
It will also enable the farmers to earn in dollar, euro and yuan, considering the countries importing cocoa; China, United States, United Kingdom, Brazil, Germany, Malaysia, Netherlands, Vietnam, and Belgium are some of the world’s cocoa importers.
Ajuruchi disclosed the revenue potential of cocoa during the workshop on global best practices for production and processing of cocoa export in Owerri, Imo State, on Thursday.
Ajuruchi told participants at the workshop that, “There are huge potentials in value-added cocoa products, with $12 billion global worth.” Adding, “So, it will be necessary for us to increase our share of the global production for a rightful place in the global market.
“We need to ensure that Imo cocoa producers get it right. They need to join their counterparts in producing high-quality cocoa beans for value-addition and wealth generation.’’ Ajuruchi said.
