With the recent initiatives by the Federal Government to boost rice production in the country, there has been an upsurge in the number of rice processing companies in the country. In fact, Thailand which is one of the major exporters of rice to Nigeria has decided to align with this initiative by exploring the option of establishing rice mills in the country.
The effort of the Federal Government is in line with the Agricultural Transformation Action Plan which is expected to boost rural employment, create wealth and diversify the economy.
Also, the prospects of the locally made rice is quite high as it is believed to be more nutritious than the foreign rice however the advantage the imported rice has always had over the local rice is price.
But there have been efforts on the part of the government to make it more affordable. For instance the collaboration between Lagos and Kebbi led to availability of the locally made Lake rice in Lagos which was sold at N11, 500 in December 2017. This was accompanied by a positive response as over 1 million bags were sold during this period.
Recently, the Federal Executive Council approved the establishment of 10 rice
mills in order to enhance the milling capacity of locally grown rice in the country. These mills are expected to produce at least 100 tonnes per day of rice. Currently, the country has 21 rice mills however the goal is to have at least 100 large mills in order to achieve the aim of self sustenance in rice consumption.
In this post, we take a look at the major rice processing companies in the country.
#1 Olam Nigeria
Olam is one of the leading agri-business firms in the country. The company recently set up a multi-million dollar integrated rice mill in Nasarawa State which is said to have an estimated production capacity of 36,000 metric tonnes of milled rice per annum.
Also, Olam Nigeria has been the largest non-oil exporter in the country over the last decade. The company has over 2,500 direct workers and 6,000 indirect workers.
The rice mill is close to a 6000 hectare farm land which is also owned by the Olam Nigeria. The company is looking to further increase the acreage of this farmland to 10,000 hectares in order to boost rice production.
#2 Onyx Rice Mill
Located in Bida in Niger State, the Onyx Rice Mill Bida is the agribusiness arm of Onyx Multi-venture Services Ltd. The Onyx rice mill is opposite the Litani Military Barracks which is along the Bida-Badeggi highway.
The rice mill was established in 2009 and currently has an installed capacity of 40 MT per day. The mill began full operation in 2013 and has produced over 30,000 MT of rice since inception. The mill has an annual output of more than 7000 MT. also, the mill is semi-automated with state of the art equipment and over 350000 bags of rice has been produced and sold from this mill.
Onyx has been able to boost its rice production by engaging rice farmer via its out-grower scheme which was established in 2012. This has led to the empowerment of over 8000 farmers by providing interest free loans to the farmers and in-turn the farmers pay in paddy. This helps to improve rice farmer’s livelihood.
#3 Integrated Grain Processors (Nig) Ltd
The Integated Grain Processors is a Nigerian owned private company that provides high quality long grain rice to Nigerians.
Recently, the company set up an ultra-modern rice processing facility at Eke in Udi LGA, Enugu State of Nigeria. The mill processes locally grown, long grain rice which is usually packaged in 25kg and 50kg bags under the brand name of Oyo-Oyo rice.
The rice processing facility commenced production in August 2011 and the mill produces about 2000 bags of rice each month which is sold directly to customers.
Also, the company produces rice bran as a by-product. The bran is very rich in minerals and vitamins. Additionally, it can be used for food or as a high grade animal feed. The bran is usually packaged in 50 kg bag and an estimated 600 bags of rice bran are produced each month.
#4 Quarra Rice Mill
The Quarra Rice Mill was opened officially on the 19th of September 2013. The rice mill is a 25,000 tonne capacity facility located in Tsaragi, Kwara State.
However, the current capacity is 16,250 tonnes a year of par boiled and milled rice. The mill has identified over 500 out-growers that supplies grains. Also, the company is developing a rice seed farm on a 1,000 hectare land. This production volume is still quite small compared to the country’s import as it is estimated at 1% of imports but the company is expected to process 150,000 tonnes of rice once it starts operating at full capacity.
Also, Quarra collaborates with the Wicklow’s Agricultural Support Hib which is a fully staffed financial and operational leadership team. This partnership has boosted the growth of the Quarra Rice Mill by providing the necessary financial aid.
#5 Igbemo Rice Processing Company Limited
Igbemo is the first licensed private operating rice processing and branding company in Ekiti State, Nigeria. The company processes as well as brand rice grains produced in farms in Ekiti State.
The vision of the company is to achieve global standards of excellence in our operations with focus on consumer satisfaction and to function as a responsible corporate citizen enriching the quality of life of the community and work towards sustainable development.
Wrapping up
This post can’t be concluded without the mention of the impact of the Dangote Group on rice processing. In 2017, the group announced its plans to establish rice processing factory in Jigawa State and Sokoto State. This is a part of the Dangote Rice Outgrower Scheme which produced an agreement with the Federal Government leading to integrated rice production in Kebbi, Sokoto, Zamfara, Kano, Niger and Jigawa states.
The facility in Jigawa is expected process 225,000 MT of paddy rice annually once completed. On the other hand, the processing mill in Sokoto is expected to have a capacity to process 250,000 MT of rice annually when completed.