CBN PRAISES ERISCO FOODS FOR SUCCESSFUL OPERATIONS AND MADE-IN-NIGERIA CAMPAIGN

 

The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria on Wednesday, September 30, 2015 praised the effort of Erisco Foods Limited in its ambitious Tomato Revolution Drive in Nigeria. The Governor spoke through his representatives led by Mr. Paul Nduka Eluhaiwe who led a high-powered delegation of CBN top management from Abuja to an official visit to the offices and factory of Africa’s largest tomato paste manufacturer whose tomato paste plant is located at Oregun in Lagos to assess the progress of the company, their level of productivity and capacity.

The delegation was made up of the Special Adviser to the CBN Governor on Development Finance, Mr Paul Nduka Eluhaiwe, the Director of Corporate Communications, Mr. Ibrahim Muazu,  the Director Development Finance, Dr. Olaitan Mudashiru, the Deputy Director/ Head of Agriculture Development Finance, Uzo Onuoha, Mr. B.O Odufote, Head, Project Management, and a host of other top officials of the CBN.

Chief Eric Umeofia, President and CEO of Erisco Foods Limited, welcomed the CBN officials and thanked them for their visit. He said, “I welcome you all to Erisco Foods Limited. As we all know, Erisco Foods Limited is an indigenous Nigerian company and our aim is to turn Nigeria from a country that imports 100% of tomato paste to a country that not only produces their own tomato paste but also export the product to other countries.”

Chief Umeofia continued: “We want Nigerians to have a whole range of products for breakfast, lunch and dinner all from our own soil because it is healthier and more nutritious. Those imported goods are usually goods that are substandard and cannot be used in the countries from which they are being imported and so they are brought here as a dumping ground for Nigerians to consume and we in Erisco Foods want that to stop.” He decried the current situation of the country where graduates work as menial staff and do jobs that uneducated people should do just because of the current poor state of the Nigerian economy. He however expressed confidence in this current Government and the new CBN policy which he said has really helped to boost sales of indigenous manufacturers.

Chief Eric Umeofia also appealed to CBN to continue to support them in providing more jobs for Nigerians as well as driving Economic growth in the country. He stressed the fact that Nigerians need to develop the habit of buying Made-in-Nigeria products to enhance good health and a better economy for all Nigerians. This he said will increase Nigeria’s foreign reserves and Nigerians will not have to struggle to find their way out of the country just to earn a living.

Mr Paul Nduka Eluhaiwe, the special adviser to the CBN Governor on Development Finance, said the governor himself has been anxious to visit Erisco Foods in order to see for himself all that has been going on in the company but because of certain exigencies, he couldn’t make it and that is why he sent such top delegation on his behalf to show how much regard the CBN has for Erisco foods and the works they have been doing.

He said, “The Central bank has always had a focus on productivity in this country as far back as when the bank was established. The bank used to finance the marketing board and then shifted towards agriculture. Today, CBN is not just financing agriculture, but is also financing real sector activities which ranges from Agricultural financing, SME financing, Infrastructure financing and anything that has to do with the real sector. CBN understands that no matter what is done in terms of monetary policy, if the issue of productivity is not addressed then the issue of inflation, Foreign exchange rates, poverty, unemployment and poor economy will also not be addressed.”

“Without enhancing productivity and localizing productivity, we will not achieve our purpose as a nation. When the governor of the Central Bank resumed office, he came out with a blue print on what he wanted to achieve and one of the major aims was to focus on real sector financing.”

“In the area of Agriculture, he decided to finance agriculture especially in the area of rice, wheat and sugar. CBN had already developed a programme called the NIRSAL (THE NIGERIAN INCENTIVE-BASED RISK SHARING SYSTEM FOR AGRICULTURAL LENDING) which has focused on the issue of tomato. NIRSAL, has worked on the tomato value chain and I am happy that people like Chief Eric Umeofia has taken advantage of the opportunities in tomato value chain. I think you are a very smart man because you have seen the advantage and opportunity in that sector and you have taken it. CBN is happy that Nigerians like Chief Eric Umeofia are beginning to have a rethink and trying to enhance productivity in the economy.”

According to him, the major reason the CBN Governor has decided to focus on these areas is to make sure “we enhance our foreign reserves, reduce our level of importation, produce indigenous goods, enhance employment in the nation.”

He observed that, people who graduated from the University are doing jobs that clerks and those who didn’t go to school should do because the opportunities are not there and according to him, The Nigerian population growth rate indicates that, if this is not addressed there is going to be a big problem.

“The only way this could be addressed as a nation is to enhance productivity of the real sector. The real sector is supposed to drive the economy for Nigeria. All CBN has been doing is to make sure that manufacturers in the country are supported to enhance productivity because it is very key and paramount to the nation,” he said.

This he said is the reason CBN has declined to give foreign exchange for the importation of 41 products so as to make sure that products that can be manufactured locally will not be imported into the country.

He noted that the quality of rice produced in Nigeria is better than the imported ones. Also, the wheat produced in Nigeria contains 15% protein as compared to that of America which contains just 9% protein.

“That is why the CBN has visited to see how far the productivity in Erisco foods has come and what the company has done with the funds granted them by CBN.” He acknowledged the fact that the CBN funds may not be enough, but it must have made impact in the company.

The Director Development Finance, Dr.  Olaitan Mudashiru also said, what Erisco Foods is doing is in tandem with what the Central Bank wants to achieve and therefore the Central Bank is ready to support them in any way they can and to give support to willing investors in such a way that they can lead and expand Nigeria’s base.

Chief Eric Umeofia thereafter took the officials of the CBN on a facility tour through the factory. The CBN officiasl were really impressed with the growth and development Erisco Foods has recorded and pledged their continuous support to the company. Some of the products produced by Erisco Foods Limited include Ric-Giko, Erisco and Nagiko tomato pastes (in various packages and sizes), Packaged Garri with sugar and milk inside, Seasoning cubes, Milk Powder, Rice, Coffee Mix, Wheat, Rice flour, Ginger tea, Label tea, Vitamin C and a whole range of other food products.

Chief Eric Umeofia said Erisco Foods currently has the capacity to produce up to 450,000 metric tonnes of Tomato Paste and with continuous support of the CBN and other commercial banks, they can produce up to 1,000,000 metric tonnes. According to him, Nigeria as a whole needs about 7,500 metric tonnes of tomato paste.

Erisco Foods Limited currently has a total staff of over 1500 and with more expansion, they can employ up to 4000 Nigerians. The company is planning to expand its operations to Jigawa, Sokoto, Kano and other states of the federation to realize their backward integration projects for the tomato industry.

Chief Eric Umeofia added that, Erisco foods is currently the fourth largest producers of tomato paste in the world and they are working towards becoming the third in the next few months.

Expressing his delight, he thanked CBN for their recent policy of not allowing foreign exchange for products which can be produced locally. According to him, prior to the formation of that policy, Erisco foods was not making good sales but the announcement of the policy affected the company positively by boosting their sales and increasing their productivity and staff strength.

Mr Paul Eluhiade also thanked the CEO of Erisco foods for his warm reception. He commended the CEO for the tremendous growth and expansion of the company and encouraged him to continue doing what he is doing that has endeared him to the people.

He said “what we have seen today shows that there is a great improvement. A lot of works have been done here in terms of machines that are in place here, the capital expenditure that has been put into this project now, the level of capacity that they have and now it has become so large that it is the fourth largest in the whole world. This is the kind of thing we encourage in Nigeria. We want our banks to also see reasons why they should finance the real sector of the economy because if we don’t do that, nobody is going to do it for us. China, America and other countries will not do it for you. Rather, they will compete with you because the world is a global competition.”

“We need indigenous business, we need indigenous entrepreneurs, we need indigenous banks. The last time we came here, there were just 500 workers, but today, they are over 1000 and if all the machines available here are put into use, then Erisco Foods can have up to 4000 workers here and that will be a great relief for Nigerian youths who are unemployed.”

He promised that, the CBN will continue to support Erisco Foods and other indigenous manufacturers because Nigeria has the capacity to feed all Nigerians as well as export food items to other African countries. He therefore encouraged Nigerians to patronise made-in-Nigeria products so as to help move our economy forward.

The Chairman of Erisco Foods, Barrister Bashir A. Albasu, CON and a traditional ruler of Kano state, who was also present at the occasion gave the vote of thanks. He thanked the CBN for taking time to assemble such a high level team all the way from Abuja to visit Erisco Foods Limited. He also appealed to the CBN, being the closest organization to the government, to convey the feelings of Erisco Foods Limited and other Indigenous manufacturers to the government.

He lamented the fact that, Nigerian manufacturers are losing a lot of money as a result of the fact that substandard goods which are imported into the country has flooded the market and because those goods are cheaper than those manufactured here in Nigeria, Nigerians tend to patronise them more despite their substandard quality.

According to him, Kano is the biggest market in Nigeria and goods from Kano used to go as far as Senegal, but because of the massive importation of substandard goods, almost all the factories in Kano have been closed. He therefore appealed to the government to look into this seriously and come to the aid of indigenous manufacturers in Nigeria.

CBN PRAISES ERISCO FOODS FOR SUCCESSFUL OPERATIONS AND MADE-IN-NIGERIA CAMPAIGN The Governor of the Central…

Posted by BrandPower on Thursday, 1 October 2015