Best Foods Fresh Farms recently took delivery of the greenhouse technology units also known in company circles as “Dizengoff Farmer’s Kit” (DFK), in a move hailed by Agric industry watchers as a big step forward in efforts at achieving food sufficiency in the country. They also described it as a clear endorsement for the technology by players both in terms of production and investment.
Speaking during the formal handover, the Managing Director of Best Foods Fresh Farms Mr Emmanuel Ijewere said the 20 units acquired by the company was done to strengthen its production capacity and put it in a strong position to make a significant impact on the huge demand for fresh vegetables in Lagos and across the country.
“Clearly our capacity to produce more high-quality vegetables will be greatly enhanced. And if you do the calculations it means we will be able to do more for our customers and in the market. “
Best Foods Fresh Farms which has a technical partnership with Dizengoff is one of the best known such greenhouse farms in Lagos with current production capacity estimated at 30 metric tonnes per-season. The additional units of greenhouses to its operations is generally seen by stakeholders as “an indication of the success of the technology in the production of fresh, high-quality vegetables and potentially may be a stimulus for investors to participate in the country’s huge Agric sector.”
Ijewere who also spoke on the significance of the acquisition by the company said that “as a company, we have done well. When fully deployed, “we are confident that what we have done will significantly propel us and enable us to play a bigger role in the nation’s food production market. So if you ask me, I think we are moving in the right direction.”
Meanwhile, experts have noted that whereas the country’s demand for vegetables is put at over 2.3 million metric tonnes per year, it is only able to produce just about 1.8 million metric tonnes. The greenhouse technology they say is “a potentially very viable option capable of narrowing the gap.
Also speaking, a highly elated Dizengoff C.EO, Mr Antti Ritvonen expressed strong optimism about the future of agriculture in the country and it’s potential to easily become self-sufficient in food production within a short time. “With the rapidly growing adoption of the greenhouse technology, I believe we have raised the stakes and I feel very confident about the future.
“Nigeria has a potential of becoming self-reliant in vegetable production through the greenhouse technology and in the nearest future, become an exporter of high-quality vegetables to other countries in the world,” he said.
Mr Ritvonen who also spoke on why Dizengoff has achieved consistent success with the technology says “We believe it is not enough to provide products alone, through our combined technical know-how, with do-how and quality inputs, we have performed consistently, day in and day out.”
The Dizengoff Greenhouse technology is aimed at providing farmers with an all year round technique to produce and increase the yields of greenhouse crops such as tomatoes, pepper, cucumber and sweet-melon as well as provide steady incomes for the farmers. It also involves the transfer of knowledge to farmers to improve the quality of their produce, reduce field losses and ensure higher profits.
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