Olam Agri in Nigeria has been commended on its innovative approach to raising agricultural productivity. The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari commended the company during his inspection of its integrated rice farm and mill in Nasarawa State.
This visit followed a recent courtesy call on the Minister and the Vice President by Olam Agri’s top management, where the company expressed interest in expanding its partnership with the Federal Government to enhance agricultural productivity further. The Minister, who visited the Olam Agri Rice Farm in the company of Nasarawa State Deputy Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Akabe and a team of technical experts, used the opportunity to flag off Olam Agri’s dry season rice harvest. Akabe said that he was particularly impressed by Olam’s commitment to leveraging mechanisation and technology driven farming methods across its 13,500-hectare fully-integrated rice farming operations.
“With a paddy milling capacity of 210,000 metric tonnes, they have demonstrated significant strides in agricultural productivity. Over 4,000 hectares have been cultivated, yielding an impressive 4.3 tonnes of rice per hectare”, he declared. The Country Head and Managing Director of Olam Agri in Nigeria, Anil Nair, assured that Olam Agri would continue to invest in Research and Development in the rice value chain to scale the introduction of germplasm as part of a breeding programme targeted at improving the yield potential of the current seed varieties, while developing new varieties, which adapted well to local soil and weather conditions and can withstand major environmental threats.
“As a business, we prioritise captive supply through large-scale farming practices. We maintain stringent quality control while fostering an out-growers model that provides preferential access to seeds, training, and rates for many farmers while benefiting households, communities, cooperatives, and women”, Nair said. He hoped that the visit would further deepen the company’s partnership with the Federal Government and impact the investment landscape, adding that the visit had reinforced the support for the Nigerian government’s renewed hope agenda and their readiness to engage with critical agricultural stakeholders to keep driving productivity and sustainable growth.
