Nigerian Breweries (NB), Psaltry International Company, and International Fertiliser Development Centre (IFDC) have agreed a deal to boost cassava production and raise farmers’ income as well as wellbeing.
NB Managing Director, Nicolaas Vervelde, said the company has a long standing commitment to support economic growth by sourcing raw materials locally.
“Through our partnership with Psaltry and IFDC, we are taking a big step towards further realising this ambition with cassava,” he explained.
Psaltry Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Oluyemisi Iranloye, expressed excitement about the partnership, saying it would fast track the growth of her young company.
She described it as “a huge opportunity for Psaltry to buy more raw materials from local farmers which would ultimately transform them into commercial farmers.
“The partnership is also a big boost in our effort to improve the quality of life of our host community.”
2SCALE’s National Cluster Adviser, Thompson Ogunsanmi, enthused that the partnership will take cassava farmers to another level based on the company’s model of inclusive growth.
“It is a sustainable model that enables smallholder farmers to benefit from agriculture as a profitable business,” he stressed.
NB Corporate Affairs Adviser, Kufre Ekanem, explained that the collaboration is meant to improve the output of smallholder farmers while supporting economic development and inclusive growth in Africa.
“The partnership will enhance farmer productivity and increase supply of high-quality cassava roots to Psaltry which will, in turn, provide industrial quality cassava starch for Nigerian Breweries to extract maltose syrup for use in the brewing process,” Ekanem said in a statement.
This agreement, which 2SCALE signed on behalf of IFDC, succeeds the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by the partners in June 2014.
The MoU formed part of the 2SCALE programme, a Dutch-funded initiative which aims to improve rural livelihoods and food security in Africa.
2SCALE is short for Towards Sustainable Clusters in Agribusiness through Learning in Entrepreneurship.
The partners agreed to support small-scale farmers in the production of better and more cassava through technical assistance, training, and easier access to finance.
The deal will enable more smallholder farmers to participate in the market for processed cassava for large industrial purposes.
It also enhances NB’s socio-economic contribution through agriculture and supports the ambition of Heineken to source 60 per cent of its raw materials in Africa locally by 2020.
From June to December 2014, 2SCALE and Psaltry sensitised, mobilised and trained over 500 direct farmers who supplied more than 20,000 tonnes of cassava roots to Psaltry’s processing factory.
In the next three years, over 2,000 direct farmers are expected to benefit from the project, which also targets women and youths to ensure equity among beneficiaries.
