The Nigerian-British Chamber of Commerce (NBCC) and the Oyo State government have thrown weight behind the agricultural transformation agenda of the current president, even as they stressed the need for definite timelines for the policy implementation.

Ahead of AGRITECH 2012 which started Tuesday in Israel, participants that attended through Hadur Travels and Tours went on professional farm visits to Kibbutzm which can be likened to communal farms to get firsthand knowledge on advanced farming techniques.

We are into processing and packaging of foodstuffs for export and local use. We started in 2008, and it has been a very good venture. We have exported foodstuffs to USA, South Africa, UK, Canada, and we are in serious discussions with some Japanese food experts. Foodstuffs processing, packaging and marketing is a very good business if one gets it right. If one just delves into it, there may be lots of challenges too difficult to handle.

Most of the imported rice consumed in Nigeria has been warehoused for 10 to 15 years before shipment to Africa. This fact was disclosed again during the session on agriculture at the recently concluded Lagos Ehingbeti Summit, where consultants bared their minds on the fact that imported rice was over-processed, preserved with chemicals and perfumed so it can last long and scent nice.