Lagos APPEALS tasks farmers On Produce Exportation

Farmers have been advised to embrace the export of locally produced products, to contribute to the foreign coffers of the Nigerian economy. 

The Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Agriculture, Dr. Olayiwole Onasanya, gave the advice at a 3-day training organised by Lagos State Agro-Processing, Productivity Enhancement and Livelihood Support (APPEALS) project for farmers in the state. 

He said part of the mandate of the project is to develop the export potential of the beneficiaries and to ensure successful linkage to the international market, noting that the meeting with the certification and regulatory agencies is one of the strategic ways in achieving the feat.
 
In her address, the Lagos State Coordinator of APPEALS Project, Mrs. Oluranti Sagoe-Oviebo, urged the farmers to work towards standardising the production and processing of aquaculture, rice, and poultry for the export market and high-earned market.  
 
She said the goal of the training tagged: “Meeting of Certification and Regulatory Agencies with APPEALS project beneficiaries,” was to increase the export value of the project’s beneficiaries.

She said: “We are training our farmers on best practices that will ensure that they get certification from relevant agencies and to ensure that they are getting premium prices for whatever they are selling.
 
“This training is part of the activities to support our beneficiaries. This training will enlighten them in the certification and to understand the regulations so as to increase their export potential.
 
“A lot of our beneficiaries are encouraging us with the pace at which they are adopting the technologies we have demonstrated to them.
 
She also revealed that 5,000 farmers had been trained and 720 beneficiaries supported with a grant for technology adoption so far in the three value chains of the APPEALS project, which are rice, aquaculture, and poultry.