Yam export: Agency cautions exporters on certification

The Nigerian Agriculture Quarantine Service NAQS has warned exporters to get phytosanitary certificate before exporting their produce to avoid rejection.

The NAQS Coordinating Director, Dr. Vincent Isiegbe, who stated this in Abuja, said on a daily basis, the agency gets, at least five interception notices of Nigerian agricultural produce, which is not good for the country’s image.

He said: “when such interceptions are made, the report is circulated to all 28 member countries of the European Union, which is counting against Nigeria.”

Isiegbe stated that any exporter or farmer that engages NAQS in its export processes has always succeeded, and that the processes are stringent, but are satisfying and rewarding.

Speaking on issues surrounding export of Nigerian yams to the United Kingdom, he said not only did the yam exporter not get certification from the agency, but he also did not get phytosanitary certificate before shipping the yam to the UK.

He said yam exported to the United States was not rejected, because of quality since it went through all necessary phytosanitary certification, but for logistics challenge, explaining that the yam stayed on the ship for three months, making it to go bad.

The NAQS boss lamented that since implementation of the executive order causing them to be withdrawn from terminal building at the airport and relocated to the cargo section, the agency has not been able to perform its responsibility of certifying agricultural commodity before exportation.