Nigeria's export promotion agency urged cassava growers in Bayelsa State to consider processed products for overseas markets, seeking to widen potential sales for farmers and processors, BusinessDay reported.
The Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) and the Bayelsa State Committee on Export Promotion (SCEP) held a farmer forum Thursday in Yenagoa, according to the outlet's Oct. 19 report. NEPC also distributed cassava planting stems to farmer groups at the event, BusinessDay said.
NEPC Bayelsa State Coordinator Sylvia Adeneye described flour, starch and chips as potential products for domestic and international markets, the report said. Agricultural Development Programme (ADP) director Beketin Taiwo Olubukola, who oversees planning, monitoring and evaluation, also discussed industrial starch, ethanol and animal feed, according to BusinessDay.
Across all non-oil products, Nigeria recorded $6.1 billion in export receipts and 8.02 million metric tonnes in export volume in 2025, NEPC said.
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) identifies limited access to improved planting material, postharvest losses and a gap between cassava production and use as challenges across Nigeria. It proposes investment in processing units as one response.
In Bayelsa, representatives of several farming groups, including cassava growers, previously sought a facility where their products could be prepared for sale, the state government said in a 2025 statement.
In a separate effort during the 2024 dry farming season, the state distributed more than 20,000 bundles of cassava stems across its eight local government areas. A 6,700-tonne harvest figure cited by the government was a projection, not a reported result.
Formal exports also require paperwork. NEPC's guide requires exporters to register with the council and lists quality documents by product, including phytosanitary certificates for agricultural commodities and health certificates for processed foods.
