Providing employment for a large section of the population, agriculture remains a major source of economic activity in Nigeria. Nigeria produced 242, 000 tonnes of cocoa in 2008. The National Cocoa Development Committee (NCDC), made up of the 14 cocoa producing states in the country, has distributed new high yield cocoa seedlings to cocoa farmers, and continues to allow the purchase of chemicals and inputs at 50% subsidy.
Nigeria, world’s fourth-biggest producer of cocoa, plans to double cocoa production to 500,000 tons by next year .
Cocoa ( Theobroma cacao L. ) is a native of Amazon region of South America. The bulk of it is produced in the tropical areas of the African continent. There are over 20 species in the genus but the cocoa tree Theobroma cacao is the only one cultivated widely.
Cocoa is the second major non-oil foreign exchange earner in Nigeria after leather. It is produced in fourteen {14} states of the federation namely Ondo,Cross River, Oyo, Osun, Ekiti, Ogun, Edo, Kogi, Akwa Ibom, Delta, Abia, Kwara, Ebonyi and Rivers with an annual production rate of 225,000 metric tons {MT}.
Over 98% of the product is exported and it’s provides means of livelihood and employment to over five million {5,000,000} people.
The new crop varieties supplied by government produce 1 1/2 tons of cocoa per hectare 2.47 acres each season compared with the older types which yield 1/2 ton. The seelding are early-maturing, high-yielding, disease-resistant beans that mature in about 18 months to farmers to replace the traditional crop with four to five years maturity.
The uses of cocoa are many. These include among others cocoa butter, cake and liquor. Cocoa products are used for beverage production and cosmetics, while its bye-products can also be used as organic fertiliser and feed for ruminant animals. So far, from cocoa pod, only the cocoa beans are economically used.
The cocoa husk and cocoa sweetens have been proved to be capable of a number of industrial processes, such as the use of the husk in livestock feed and soap making, and that of sweeteners in manufacturing of jellies, jams, food ingredients, wines, sugary solution, etc.
Factors to consider before cultivating cocoa in Nigeria includes land, choice of variety, time of planting, seed rate, seed dressing, spacing and other agricultural practice.
A well-maintained cocoa plantation will yield a minimum of two tons of dry seed per hectare per year starting from the fourth year and the current selling price of cocoa is N380, 000.
From the above, it is clear that a large and sustainable exist for cocoa cultivation and production in Nigeria for both local and export market.
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Report Title: PROCESSING RAW COCOA SEED AND EXPORT OF COCOA BYE – PRODUCTS IN NIGERIA {COCOA LIQUOR, COCOA BUTTER AND ALKALIZED COCOA POWDER PRODUCTION / EXPORT};THE FEASIBILITY REPORT.
Report Code: FORA/09/2014/COCOAPROCESSING/0-3-9839-88
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