The Federal Government has moved to address Nigeria’s heavy dependence on imported wheat and high food production costs, identifying weak domestic supply, underutilised industrial capacity and expensive financing as major constraints to making bread and other wheat-based foods affordable.

The government’s intervention comes as Nigeria’s wheat imports are estimated at 5.6 million metric tonnes for the 2026/2027 marketing year, against domestic production of about 120,000 metric tonnes, highlighting the gap between local output and the requirements of the country’s food manufacturing industry.

This was disclosed yesterday at the launch of Project WHEAT-NESS in Abuja, a Federal Government programme aimed at improving the competitiveness of the wheat-based foods value chain and reducing avoidable production costs.

The Special Adviser to the President on Industry, Trade and Investment, John Uwajumogu, said Nigeria’s dependence on imported wheat exposed consumers and businesses to international price shocks, exchange-rate movements and disruptions to global supply chains.

He cited the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2022 Russia-Ukraine war as examples of how international disruptions raised wheat prices and, in turn, increased the cost of food for Nigerian households.

He said Project WHEAT-NESS was designed to improve coordination among government institutions, farmers, millers, manufacturers, financial institutions and distributors to address constraints across the value chain.

Nigeria’s wheat milling capacity is estimated at eight million metric tonnes. At the same time, the Minister of State for Industry, Senator John Owan Enoh, said the country’s mills were operating at roughly half their production capacity.

The disparity pointed to a challenge beyond industrial infrastructure: the availability of locally produced wheat in the volume, quality and price required by processors.

Enoh said the government would pursue an integrated approach covering domestic production, industrial processing, small businesses, consumer markets and financing, stressing that improving efficiency across the chain was necessary to strengthen competitiveness and affordability.

He said nearly three out of every four loaves of bread consumed in Nigeria come from artisanal and regional bakeries, making small businesses critical to improving food affordability and expanding employment.

He said the programme would prioritise evidence-based interventions, measurable targets and transparent reporting rather than isolated measures that address one part of the industry while leaving other cost pressures unresolved.

The opening remarks, delivered on behalf of the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, also highlighted the financial implications of the sector’s dependence on imports.

Director, Department of Economic Research and Policy Management, Federal Ministry of Finance, Abubakar Musa Othman, who represented Oyedele, said wheat-based products, including bread, noodles, pasta, biscuits and pastries, had significant implications for household expenditure, manufacturing costs, employment and foreign exchange demand.

The Minister noted that Nigeria’s real Gross Domestic Product grew by 4.43 per cent year-on-year in the second quarter of 2026, while manufacturing expanded by 3.24 per cent. The representative said the figures reinforced the need to deepen domestic production and improve industrial competitiveness.

However, the government cautioned against pursuing import substitution without first establishing a reliable and competitive domestic supply base.