Olam moves to accelerate ginger value chain in Kaduna

Ginger farmers in Southern Kaduna have received a fillip that would enhance their harvest, with a workshop, organised by Olam Nigeria for 500 ginger farmers in the state.

Regional manager of the firm, Mr. Dip Sinha, who spoke during the workshop, said the initiative was an avenue to empower the farmers to produce world-class ginger, adding that the collaborative plan with farmers in the state, will lead to increase in the value of Ginger crop produced.

The regional manager who explained that the primary objective of the initiative was to stimulate quality control and testing procedure, noted that Olam is committed to enabling window of opportunities that will ensure sustainable crop production, handling and storage practices, from the farm gate in Nigeria to the doorstep of customers globally.

Dip revealed that Olam is collaborating with National Root Crops Research Institute (NRCRI) and Kaduna Agricultural Development Project (KADP), for effective execution of the plan objective.

According to him, “Ginger is an integral part of Olam`s spices and vegetable ingredients initiative floated to deal directly with farmers and local markets, as well as global market. Already, we have trained over 500 ginger farmers drawn from Kachia, Jaba, and Jema’a, all in Southern Kaduna local government area.”

Representative of Ministry of Agriculture in Kaduna, James B. Dutse, who described ginger farming as economic activity deep rooted in southern Kaduna, applauded Olam Nigeria for what he called knowledge and skills based impact, saying the initiative will add more value to the commodity being produced in the area.