The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Africa and Middle East, Olam International, Venkataramani Srivathsan, has lauded the efforts of the Federal Government and the people of Nigeria towards ensuring food self-sufficiency in the country.
Srivathsan, who gave this commendation at the inauguration of his firm’s N20bn poultry and animal feed mill in Kaduna State, observed that the people of Nigeria had shown great determination and resilience in building an economy that emphasised nutrition and food security.
The Olam CEO specially lauded the encouragement he got from the government of President Muhammadu Buhari, who was physically present to witness the inauguration of the complex.
He also noted the enthusiasm and support by the Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, to firms that braved the insecurity issues in the nation to invest in that part of Nigeria.
He said, “As an agribusiness and food company born in Nigeria 27 years ago, we have witnessed over the decades an uncommon resilience and zeal by Nigerians to build an economy that puts a marker on nutrition and food security and Olam is happy to be a catalyst in that quest.
He pointed out that the feed mill was a testimony of the pledge the firm had made to invest in the country despite the economic headwinds of recent years.
He noted, “In spite of the vagaries and challenges the operating environment presents, we at Olam only choose to see the opportunities that can be harnessed for the collective good of the citizenry.
“Our investments are close to a billion dollars in facilities ranging from wheat milling and pasta to a multi-million dollar 10,000-hectare rice farm in Nasarawa as well as a mill with capacity for 105,000 metric tonnes.
“In our upstream business, we have the state of the art sesame hulling facility in Sagamu and we pride ourselves as the first company to export hulled sesame to Japan in 1995. In addition, we export processed cocoa, soya and other crops.”
Srivathsan, who said his firm provided 7,300 direct jobs in its 18 factories across Nigeria while supporting over 500,000 farmers with micro-credit, inputs and capacity building initiatives, disclosed that Olam’s foray into the animal feeds and protein business was not by accident but a conscious effort at helping to plug the over 40 per cent gap identified in the sector.
“This new facility will only help reinvigorate the industry by closing the supply gap in animal feed and providing Nigerians with a nutritious source of protein,” he said.
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