Nigeria is richly endowed with pure assets starting from crude oil and pure fuel to an array of strong minerals reminiscent of tin, gold, coal, columbite, iron ore, and limestone.
The nation can also be blessed with huge agricultural produce together with maize, cocoa, yams, and groundnuts, in addition to industrial minerals like kaolin and barite.
Regardless of this wealth, Nigeria continues to grapple with a long-standing problem. The majority of those assets are exported in uncooked kind with little or no worth addition, limiting their impression on industrial development and job creation.
The Federal Authorities not too long ago expressed concern over the nation’s weak returns from agricultural exports. In line with the Minister of Agriculture and Meals Safety, Abubakar Kyari, the sector contributes about 35% of Nigeria’s Gross Home Product (GDP) and employs roughly the identical proportion of the workforce.
But, agricultural exports generate lower than $400 million in overseas trade earnings yearly. Towards this backdrop, meals and beverage big PepsiCo says it’s working to strengthen Nigeria’s agricultural worth chain by sourcing virtually all of its uncooked supplies regionally.
In line with Felix Enwemadu, Normal Supervisor of PepsiCo Nigeria, the corporate depends closely on Nigerian farmers to maintain its operations, with key provides coming by means of partnerships with Flour Mills of Nigeria and Presco Plc.
On this interview with Nairametrics, he defined the broader advantages of this technique throughout agricultural worth chain.
Nairametrics: How lengthy has PepsiCo been working in Nigeria and what impression has it made?
Felix Enwemadu: I feel the place to begin is the PepsiCo’s dedication to Nigeria. I feel that’s the very start line.
We’ve been investing in Nigeria considerably over the previous three a long time, and our intention can also be to proceed.
But in addition, we’ve constructed a partnership by way of how we impression the communities by which we work and play. And I feel that, for me, is the extra important piece, slightly than enterprise development alternatives.
Nairametrics: How have you ever unlocked extra job alternatives, and construct a thriving ecosystem of native suppliers?
Felix Enwemadu: We supply our uncooked supplies predominantly from Nigeria, and that additionally helps to create jobs.
But in addition, from an impression standpoint, we’re collaborating on a lot of fronts, not simply from a producing distribution standpoint, however from a social impression standpoint as nicely.
Nairametrics: What proportion of PepsiCo’s uncooked supplies are sourced regionally right here in Nigeria? And the way is the corporate working with native farmers and suppliers to strengthen the worth chain?
Felix Enwemadu: Okay. So, for those who look throughout our classes, we play in three completely different classes.
We play in oats class, the quaker oats that everyone is aware of. Very strong model with a variety of well being advantages. We even have a sausage roll model, which is named Yum Yum.
And now we’re simply seeking to introduce Cheetos into the market. So for every of them, our sourcing capabilities are barely completely different. For Cheetos, we’re sourcing near 100% of the uncooked supplies from Nigeria.
The core ingredient you see or uncooked supplies you see there may be corn. Corn grits. And our corn grits are sourced immediately from a partnership with Flour Mills, which everyone additionally is aware of.
It’s a family identify. They’ve a backward built-in program with Nigerian farmers. So, they’ve an outgrower scheme, hundreds of farmers who develop these merchandise, after which Flour Mills offtakes from them, after which converts it into what we make.
Nairametrics: What concerning the vegetable oil you employ?
Felix Enwemadu: We do 100% sourcing of our oils, our vegetable oils from a Nigerian firm known as Presco, which is quoted on the inventory trade(NGX). We’ve got a really strong partnership with them, they usually present us all of the specs of our oils that we use for Cheetos and in addition for our sausage roll. Flavors are additionally sourced regionally, in-country. So, we’re near 100%. Sausage rolls as nicely.
Our wheat flour, which is the principle element of that class, can also be sourced regionally from Flour Mills as nicely. So now we have a totally built-in native sourcing program, working with native suppliers.
The one space the place now we have an import kind of mannequin is Quaker oats, as a result of the local weather in Nigeria doesn’t permit anybody to develop oats.
In order that’s why it’s solely imported. However for the remainder of the portfolio, and for future launches as nicely, we’re seeking to supply regionally, as a result of that’s key for the event of this nation.
Nairametrics: How are you sustaining high quality and consistency whereas additionally supporting the Nigerian farmers?
Felix Enwemadu: So, I feel the place to begin is who we’re as PepsiCo.
Nairametrics: What’s PepsiCo’s relationship with the likes of NAFDAC and SON, and the way has their rules pushed high quality?
Nairametrics: What’s PepsiCo’s relationship with the likes of NAFDAC and SON, and the way has their rules pushed high quality?
Felix Enwemadu: We’re ruled by a variety of regulatory our bodies, NAFDAC, SON, and all of that. So for each product we launch into the market, earlier than we launch the product into the market, if persons are conversant with the NAFDAC or SON processes, they’ve to return to the manufacturing facility, see the method run, do a variety of the standard checks, earlier than they then provide you with an approval to then launch the product available in the market.
