• About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy & Policy
Thursday, July 10, 2025
Umpirenews | Latest News, Politics, Breaking News, Nigeria and African history
Advertisement
  • National
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Entertainment
  • Sports
  • Editorial
  • Opinion
  • Columns
No Result
View All Result
  • National
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Entertainment
  • Sports
  • Editorial
  • Opinion
  • Columns
No Result
View All Result
Umpirenews | Latest News, Politics, Breaking News, Nigeria and African history
No Result
View All Result

Nigeria’s Cocoa Processing Industry Operates at Only 8% Capacity Amid Economic Struggles

Vincent Amadi by Vincent Amadi
March 4, 2025
in Economy
Reading Time: 3 mins read
A A
0
Nigeria’s Cocoa Processing Industry Operates at Only 8% Capacity Amid Economic Struggles
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on WhatsappShare on EmailShare on Telegram


Despite the export initiative of the Federal Government of Nigeria, worsening macroeconomic challenges have caused the operation of Nigeria’s only five remaining cocoa processing plants to collapse to 8 percent of the industry’s installed capacity.
Of a once-thriving industry consisting of 15 cocoa processing plants with a total installed capacity of 250,000 tonnes, only five plants with a total utilization capacity of 20,000 tonnes per annum are currently operational.
A combination of high energy costs, multiple taxation, farmers’ preference to sell cocoa beans to traders offering higher prices than processors, and a tough business environment make exports unattractive for Nigeria’s remaining cocoa processing plants to provide the demand for butter, cake, and powder.
“The situation is so difficult and challenging for cocoa processors in Nigeria that we need to declare a state of emergency in the sector,” Felix Oladunjoy, president of the Cocoa Processors Association of Nigeria (COPAN), told a press conference on Tuesday.
“We need about five times the working capital used last year to secure key inputs now, coupled with other rising costs associated with production,” he added.


According to him, the harsh operating conditions in the country have forced some cocoa processors to suspend operations while the few that are still operating are being forced to operate below their installed production capacity.
He noted that the bankruptcy of some cocoa processors has tied up over 500 billion naira in investments in machinery for the industry, adding that the situation in the industry will worsen once the National Food Agency and Drug Administration gets approval from the government.
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has proposed export controls for 2024.
“Cocoa processors are being strangled through various policies and now NAFDAC is coming with another sword,” Oladunjoye noted.
The COPAN chairman noted that the proposed NAFDAC export controls for 2024 are a total duplication of efforts and mandates of other government agencies and said the resulting impact would be multiple taxation, delivery delays leading to international defaults, heavy penalties on exporters, and loss of jobs.
The cocoa processing industry in Africa’s most populous country is heavily in debt. COPAN put the debt burden at more than 50 billion naira in 2017.
“The current economic challenges are hitting Nigeria’s cocoa processing industry hard. We spend over 30 percent of our production costs on power alone,” said Sunday Bamikole, managing director of Premium Cocoa Products Limited says Sunday Bamikore, Managing Director, Premium Cocoa Products Limited.
Bamikore said high production costs make Nigerian processors less competitive than those in Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire.
According to him, the proposed export restrictions would further weaken exporters as NAFDAC lacks the infrastructure and human resources to manage Nigeria’s numerous export trades through sea and airport routes.
He noted that exchange rate imperfections would be further adversely affected under the law.
Despite the potential for Nigeria’s cocoa industry to diversify into agriculture and generate exponential benefits through revenue, employment, and other spin-offs, the country has yet to fully utilize its production.
With the rapid growth and expansion of chocolate confectionery and other products, cocoa remains one of the fastest-selling and most popular agricultural commodities in the international market, yet it remains ignored by the Nigerian government.


The government has repeatedly stressed over the years that the development of cocoa cultivation and processing, the single most important and largest foreign exchange earner for the continent’s largest economy since the discovery of oil, is a priority.
Nevertheless, value addition has declined, with the country receding to the fourth largest cocoa producer and supplier in the world, with a production of 340,163 tonnes in the 2021/2022 season.
This was revealed by the latest data from the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO) on global production. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nigeria exported a record 408.66 billion naira of cocoa beans in the first three months of the year, driven by rising global commodity prices in the first half of the year.
This represents an increase of 279 percent compared to the 107.59 billion naira recorded in the first three months of the year.
“In 2022, the average working capital in the industry for a cycle is N20 million but today we need N140 million per cycle,” Bamikole said.
“There is no bank in the country today that can finance that for any processor,” he noted, stressing that exporters currently receive 1.54 million naira per consignment of exported cocoa beans and 3.5 million naira for butter and alcohol per consignment, in addition to shipping costs.

Tags: businessnigeria
Vincent Amadi

Vincent Amadi

Related Posts

Senate Threatens Arrest of NNPCL Boss over missing N210 Trillion
Economy

Senate Threatens Arrest of NNPCL Boss over missing N210 Trillion

2 weeks ago
IPMAN: Dangote’s New Delivery Plan Will Bring Cheaper Fuel to Nigerians’s
Economy

IPMAN: Dangote’s New Delivery Plan Will Bring Cheaper Fuel to Nigerians’s

3 weeks ago
Enforce Transparent Pump Pricing, oil marketers Cheating Nigerians, PENGASSAN laments
Economy

Enforce Transparent Pump Pricing, oil marketers Cheating Nigerians, PENGASSAN laments

3 weeks ago
PETROAN kicks against Dangote’s petrol distribution strategy
Economy

PETROAN kicks against Dangote’s petrol distribution strategy

3 weeks ago

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

I agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.

NATIONS NEWS

Edo election: I can’t pretend what Supreme Court delivered is justice — Ighodalo
National

Edo election: I can’t pretend what Supreme Court delivered is justice — Ighodalo

7 hours ago
Ukraine’s drone strike hits Russian airbase targets
National

Security operatives neutralise 30 bandits in Katsina counter-attack

16 hours ago
Constituency Allowance: Legislative Member Rekindles Debate,  Admits Senators, House Members Receives N2b, N1b
National

Senate to criminalise electricity infrastructure vandalism and curb sabotage

16 hours ago
Ribadu Warns of Money Laundering, Drug Trafficking via Illegal Charter Operators
National

Nigeria is safer, better under Tinubu administration — NSA Ribadu

16 hours ago
Oyo Approves ₦7.7 Billion for Aircraft to Combat Banditry and Kidnapping
National

Oyo Approves ₦7.7 Billion for Aircraft to Combat Banditry and Kidnapping

1 day ago
FG to provide electricity to 300 million unserved people  — Adelabu
National

FG to provide electricity to 300 million unserved people  — Adelabu

2 days ago

POLITICS

ADC, APC woo Kwankwaso  ahead of 2027 elections

ADC, APC woo Kwankwaso  ahead of 2027 elections

2 days ago
Coalition’s ADC will collapse in 6 months — Daniel Bwala

Coalition’s ADC will collapse in 6 months — Daniel Bwala

2 days ago
Will the opposition coalition bring back fuel subsidy?  — Katsina Governor Radda

Will the opposition coalition bring back fuel subsidy?  — Katsina Governor Radda

2 days ago
PDP BoT member, Waziri, former Katsina PDP chairman, Uli, joins coalition’s ADC

PDP BoT member, Waziri, former Katsina PDP chairman, Uli, joins coalition’s ADC

3 days ago
Coalition’s ADC takes over of PDP structures in North East

2027 election: Presidency scheming to destroy our party — ADC alarms

3 days ago
Keyamo Praises Governor Mbah, Urges Professionalism in Enugu Air Launch

Keyamo Praises Governor Mbah, Urges Professionalism in Enugu Air Launch

3 days ago

YOUR ECONOMY

Senate Threatens Arrest of NNPCL Boss over missing N210 Trillion
Economy

Senate Threatens Arrest of NNPCL Boss over missing N210 Trillion

2 weeks ago
IPMAN: Dangote’s New Delivery Plan Will Bring Cheaper Fuel to Nigerians’s
Economy

IPMAN: Dangote’s New Delivery Plan Will Bring Cheaper Fuel to Nigerians’s

3 weeks ago
Enforce Transparent Pump Pricing, oil marketers Cheating Nigerians, PENGASSAN laments
Economy

Enforce Transparent Pump Pricing, oil marketers Cheating Nigerians, PENGASSAN laments

3 weeks ago
PETROAN kicks against Dangote’s petrol distribution strategy
Economy

PETROAN kicks against Dangote’s petrol distribution strategy

3 weeks ago
Dangote Refinery Begins Distribution of Petrol Nationwide
Economy

Dangote Refinery Begins Distribution of Petrol Nationwide

4 weeks ago
Nigeria Stock Exchange to Partner with Hong Kong’s Stock market
Economy

Nigeria Stock Exchange to Partner with Hong Kong’s Stock market

4 weeks ago

E & P

Napoli rejects Galatasaray €75m offer for Osimhen
Sports

Napoli rejects Galatasaray €75m offer for Osimhen

by Steven Atogi
7 hours ago
0

Super Eagles striker Victor Osimhen transfer drama has taken a new turn, as Napoli rejected a third bid from Turkish...

Oliseh Warns Osimhen Against Galatasaray Return, Urges Premier League Move

Oliseh Warns Osimhen Against Galatasaray Return, Urges Premier League Move

1 day ago
Just In: Osimhen agrees on personal terms with Galatasaray, rejects Al Hilal €75m bid

Just In: Osimhen agrees on personal terms with Galatasaray, rejects Al Hilal €75m bid

3 days ago
Breaking: Galatasaray submits €50m bid for Victor Osimhen

Breaking: Galatasaray submits €50m bid for Victor Osimhen

3 days ago
Chelsea Target Arsenal’s Ethan Nwaneri Amid Contract Talks

Chelsea Target Arsenal’s Ethan Nwaneri Amid Contract Talks

5 days ago
Arsenal Close In on Madueke Transfer After Agreeing Personal Terms

Arsenal Close In on Madueke Transfer After Agreeing Personal Terms

5 days ago

YOUR THOUGHT & HISTORY

El-Rufai Plans New Party as ADC Backup Against APC Interference
Columns

The Shadow Strategist: El-Rufai, the Illusion of Power, and 2027’s Looming Reckoning

by Odini Brains
4 days ago
Columns

Kidnapped, Silenced, Vindicated: The Full Impact of Kanu’s Judgment

by Odini Brains
2 weeks ago
The Emerging Kogi: Economic Growth Impact Transforming Better Reality
Columns

The Emerging Kogi: Economic Growth Impact Transforming Better Reality

by Kiikpoye Karibo
2 weeks ago
ON THE PUBLIC NUISANCE CALLED SOWORE
Opinion

ON THE PUBLIC NUISANCE CALLED SOWORE

by Kiikpoye Karibo
5 months ago
Data Visualizations
Columns

Five Key Considerations for Creating Effective Data Visualizations

by Blessing Chinyere Daniel
6 months ago

Who we are

Umpirenews | Latest News, Politics, Breaking News, Nigeria and African history

Welcome to Umpire News, your go-to online newspaper dedicated to broadening perspectives and expanding the horizons of our numerous readers. Read more

Browse by Category

  • Columns
  • Economy
  • Editorial
  • Entertainment
  • International
  • National
  • News
  • Opinion
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Trends

Recent News

Edo election: I can’t pretend what Supreme Court delivered is justice — Ighodalo

Edo election: I can’t pretend what Supreme Court delivered is justice — Ighodalo

July 10, 2025
Napoli rejects Galatasaray €75m offer for Osimhen

Napoli rejects Galatasaray €75m offer for Osimhen

July 10, 2025
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy & Policy

© 2024 Copyright Umpirenews. All rights reserved

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • National
  • Economy
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Entertainment
  • Editorial
  • Opinion
  • Columns

© 2024 Copyright Umpirenews. All rights reserved

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.
🤑Join & Get Our Easter Gifts 🤑

Enter your NAME & Email NOW!!

Be among the 1st 100 lucky WINNERS to win our Amazing GIFTs this Easter Period as you READ our Daily hot NEWs & make meaningful comments and follow us on our social media handles.

Name
Enter your email address