Institute Tasks Youths On Self Development

The Nigerian Institute of
Food Science and Technology (NIFST), has urged youths to embark on food and agricultural entrepreneurship with a view to becoming self-reliant.
The immediate past Chairman of the institute, Dr John Onuora, who gave this advice in Enugu last Saturday  at the institute’s 2014 Founders’ Day celebration said the objective of the celebration was to encourage graduates of the profession to go into food business by processing and packaging farm produce rather than seeking for white collar jobs.
According to him, there is no reason why graduates of food science and technology should be going about seeking for jobs while there are many food business opportunities in Nigeria.
He urged job seekers in the profession to key into the Federal Government’s Agricultural Transformation Agenda in order to showcase their skills and make a living.
“Farmers alone have not been able to meet the food demand of the nation. There is the need for food scientists and technologists to help in solving the challenges of food insecurity in the country,” he said.
In a presentation, a lecturer in Food Science and Technology (FST) from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka,  Dr Gabriel Okafor, said it was the responsibility of the department to train people on different methods of preserving food.
Okafor stressed the need to develop storage systems for agricultural commodities as well as upgrade indigenous food storage technologies.
“In Nigeria, over 10 million tonnes of grain estimated at N825 billion was reported to be lost to spoilage and wastage occasioned by the lack of post-harvest management,’’ he said.
Earlier, in his address of welcome, the state Chairman of the institute, Mr Ignatius Akala, said the event was aimed at mentoring young graduates of the profession on the need to invest in food science and technology.