Farmers have been urged to engage in market survey and other techniques before embarking on production of any commodity. The Agro-processing specialist, Agro-Processing Productivity Enhancement and Livelihood Improvement Support , Mr. Adewale Alade, who disclosed this during a training organised by the project in Lagos, emphasised the need for marketing, branding and packaging of Nigeria’s agro commodities.
The Training Manager for Africa Leadership Forum, Mr. Funsho Popoola, enjoined the farmers to improve the value-chain of their produce in order to increase their productivity.He said the organisation is partnering APPEALS to build capacity for the agricultural value-chain players in Nigeria, adding that: “We do it in the Nigerian ecosystem making sure that they develop their capacity at production and that they also explore international markets.
“We know the strategic importance of marketing when it comes to perishable agro-produce. If not sold on time they get bad and then the capital is lost. The loss of capital for the farmers is what we are trying to avoid by organising this workshop to let them know what they need to do to sell in good time so that they can go back to the farm and produce again.”