In an effort to increase farmer productivity and guarantee food security in the state, the Lagos State government has opened three agro-processing centers and the Eko Farmers APPEALS Cooperative Multipurpose Society. These facilities are made possible by the Agro-Processing, Productivity Enhancement and Livelihood Improvement Support, APPEALS, Project.
The Lagos State Catfish Farmers Association of Nigeria received support from the APPEALS Project in the form of blast freezers, deep freezers, and generator sets to promote value addition through the production of frozen catfish. The commissioner for agriculture, Ms. Abisola Olusanya, commissioned the Eko Farmers APPEALS Cooperative Multipurpose Society and Frozen Catfish Cottage Industry in Agege.
In addition to reiterating the governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu administration’s commitment to ensuring food security in Lagos State, the commissioner also officially opened two Ikorodu locations: the Cottage Broiler Processing Center at Itamaga and the Egg Aggregation Center at Erikorodo.
Speaking at the launch of the four projects, Olusanya, accompanied by the Lagos State coordinator of the APPEALS Project, Mrs. Oluranti Sagoe-Oviebo, and the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture, Mrs. Olatokunbo Emokpae, asked for cooperation and support from the government and farmers, particularly those raising poultry, for the production of processed chicken products at wholesale prices and to completely stop importing chickens and other foods.
In order to meet the demands of Lagos, the state with the largest population in Nigeria, Olusanya also emphasized the significance of assisting the country’s agricultural food chain and the farming community. She pointed out that the Lagos APPEALS Project has benefited thousands of farmers in the state by improving the value chains for rice, poultry, and aquaculture.
The commissioner urged farmers to utilize the Eko Farmers APPEALS Cooperative Multipurpose Society, describing it as a useful platform that will assist them in obtaining second-level financing.
In order to meet the needs of Lagosians and give local farmers significant support, she stated that the state government would collaborate with farmers in various sectors, value chains, and clusters.
The Egg Aggregation Center at Erikorodo, Ikorodu, and the Cottage Broiler Processing Center at Itamaga, according to the state coordinator of the APPEALS Project, Mrs. Oluranti Sagoe-Oviebo, were given to the farmers in accordance with their assessment needs in order to increase their productivity.
While pleading with farmers to fully utilize the resources made available by the Lagos APPEALS Project, Sagoe-Oviebo stated that the broiler processing center will deal with the problem of foreign exchange when importing chicken from overseas and lower production costs for domestic producers.
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