Nigeria suffers about 60 percent post-harvest losses annually in tomato production and other vegetables, stakeholders in the horticulture value chain have said.
These losses and deficits recorded in value-chain, however, present opportunities for investment, which in turn will curb losses the country suffers yearly, they explained.
This came to the fore at the National Tomato Stakeholders workshop with the theme ‘Tomato Value Chain: Emerging and Longstanding Challenges and Sustainable Solutions’ in Abuja.
Speaking at the event, the project coordinator, Horti Nigeria, Mohammed Salasi, explained that the losses recorded are due to the lack of such facilities as adequate cold storage facilities, temperature facilities, gross shortage of plastic crates, and trucks.
He stated that 60 million crates are needed in the country to replace rafia baskets with only 300,000 available, and 90 percent of retailers, producers and middlemen use the rafia baskets in the country, noting that 25,000 trucks are needed but only 1,000 are available.
Salasi further said there is a deficit of 13m metric tonnes of tomatoes and other vegetables, which presents a huge investment opportunity.
He, therefore, urged investors to establish park houses and temperature control facilities to curb large amounts of post-harvest losses, adding that part of the work of Horticulture Nigeria is to introduce seed varieties that will last slightly longer.
Salsai also informed that Horti Nigeria is working with stakeholders to create a more enabling environment for investment in the value chain.
On multiple road taxes suffered by suppliers, he said Horti Nigeria is working with the government at all levels to ensure a harmonised and recognised tax. According to him, the multiple taxes are a disincentive for tomato producers as it increases the price of the produce.
Salasi further highlighted investment opportunities in the local production of soluble fertiliser. “Horti is working with local producers of liquid urea to have soluble fertiliser produced in the country, and that is also a huge potential of investment and a big market looking at the sizable number of greenhouses.
“In addition to that, Horti is already carrying out a census of greenhouses across the country, with that, we will be able to have evidence to show the government the size of the market,” he said, adding that the market for soluble fertiliser is projected to hit over $20 billion by 2027.
The Director of the horticulture division, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Deola Lordsbanjou, said one of the problems the ministry has identified is the issue of tomato levy.
“If you are importing, there must be a levy attached to it, we are not even sure if leveies have been collected, the funds would have been used for research, policy-making and for farmers”, he said.
He also decried the poor synergy between policymakers in agriculture, especially between the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, and the Ministry of Agriculture.
Further, stakeholders at the meeting decried the weak implementation of policies particularly the 2017 tomato sector policy despite its potential to grow the tomato value chain in Nigeria.
The policy was considered to have somersaulted due to weak implementation and lack of monitoring.
According to a communique issued at the end of the meeting, farmer groups decried the review of the policy in 2021 without the involvement of all stakeholders that developed it.