evokation: my palm oil processing mill

Abstract.

palm oil as it is well known is a product of the extraction process of oil palm fresh fruit bunches.

the world over palm oil has a number of uses ranging from; cooking, frying, polish making, soap making, bio fuel generation etc.

the oil palm thrives in warm tropical regions originating from the Gulf of Guinea and extends to other parts of West Africa, which explains its scientific name, Elaeis guineensis Jacq. and its popular name, the
African oil palm.

before the oil boom in Nigeria the agricultural sector was the major foreign exchange earner with the different regions producing at rather full capacity. unfortunately crude oil was discovered in the niger delta region and bye bye to agriculture.

it may surprise you to know that the oil rich Niger delta region has more potentials than just crude oil exploration and exploitation. there are unspeakable agricultural resources in the region and the oil palm is one of such that is in abundance.

According to Professor Simbo Adenuga Banjoko, a Professor of production and manufacturing management at University of Lagos, “You cannot go
wrong with food and skin care. As long as there are people to feed, the
food sector will always remain the cornerstone of the economy.”
“In the same vein, one cannot go wrong with palm oil, be it a country or a company. The long term returns are good,” he adds.
recent investigations reveal that the resilient remnant of manufacturers of consumer goods in Nigeria, whose brands e.g. margarine
etc requires palm oil to a large extent import even from some
neighbouring countries like Ghana.
Reliable sources also have it that those manufacturers of consumer
goods like soup, and margarine e.g. Reckit & Benkiser, PZ and
Unilever, are not finding it funny looking outside the country for palm
oil.
Margarine business is compatible with soap business because the products both require oils and fat as raw materials

hence it is no doubt that palm oil production in Nigeria needs a big push.

also according to a study "Constraints of Oil Palm Production in Ife Central Local
Government Area of Osun State, Nigeria" it was revealed that Majority (81%)
of the farmers were confronted with the problem
of land, 34.2% had fund problems, 5.1% claimed
that they faced climatic problems while 53.2%
complained of inadequate information and
cultivation knowledge about oil palm. About 54%
of the farmers indicated the problem of improved
planting materials and government support
whereas none of the farmers had marketing and
processing technique problems. It could be
deduced that extension contact and activities with
the farmers in the study area was still at minimal
level.

small wonder i, have gone through a lot discussing land tenure issues with the people in my village and can guarantee land mass that will support a massive oil palm estate, have good relations with wacapol; a leading producer of palm oil processing mills (POPM), hail from a coastal village with superb climate conditions in the niger delta, have the nigerian institute for palm oil research to assist in the area of information and cultivation knowledge.

in this era when economies are recovering from the global recession, the best bet for boosting economic recovery is via job creation or increased government spending by way of developmental projects and encouraging nigerian youths to embrace agriculture is on sure way of decongesting the oil sector.

the establisment of modern palm oil mills will not only create jobs for both skilled and unskilled youths, it will also provide an avenue for women in the rural areas to diversify income ventuers, eradicate traditional methods of production which have proven to be two times inefficient when compared to wacapol's POPM recently installed in abrafo -ghana, but will also prove to be a worthy forex earner, and a project that can be replicated within the west african sub region

the place.

i will concentrate my efforts around utuehi community, a host community to nigeria agip oil company in ogba/egbema/ndoni local government area in rivers state-nigeria. it is a community surrounded by rivers and lakes, oil locations, forest trees(timber and the likes), and oil palm trees beyond immagination comprising of mostly dura specie.the road network will not give the most pleasurable ride but you can get in and out, and the source of power is an industrial generator donated by Agip.

the challenge

due to oil prospecting activities of Agip most of the inhabitants have abandoned fishing and farming practices practices which were traditional occupations, education; both fomal and informal, and have all run to the nearby city of omoku in search of greener pastures.

as result fishing and farming activities have suffered greatly and funny as it may sound they still have not found greener pastures.

i took a trip to my village (utuechi) and discovered that we have not only black gold but red gold as well, but there were some problems. what were they?

1. there was a lot of dura specie and few of dura specie
2. traditional production methods were not only inefficient but also lead to wastage
3. because of the dangerous and stressful nature of traditional production methods, palm oil production is
no longer considered lucrative in the area.

i honestly believe that investing in an oil palm estate and a modern palm oil processing mill in my village will eradicate out dated production methods, breed high yielding fresh fruit bunches(ffb), reduce the danger and strain faced in times passed, make the business more lucrative to the villagers, create employment even if it's just for a few, serve as alternative source of income for many, and boost foreign trade when the export phase comes on stream.

the idea

the idea or solution is to immediately contact wacapol; since i have good relations with them. arrange for them to transport and install a two ton per hour palm oil processing mill and immediately commence training of personnel. the Nigerian institute for palm oil research will also be contacted for expert advice on purchase and propagation of the seeds that will form the oil palm plantation

once operational, the popm will guarantee increased output of palm oil from which local markets can be supplied and when we complete development of the export phase we can sell to the international community. job hazards will be reduced to the barest minimum as a result of training and because there is no similar project within the local government, competitors will have a hard time keeping track. see
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wacapol/

establishing a popm in my village will also have back link effects which will be beneficial to other agro allied industries eg. rivers vegetable oil company in terms of the kernels obtained after cracking the nuts and also it could supply palm oil for bio fuel research and the shells are sometimes used as alternative building material in place of chipping.

going by what i saw in utuechi, the few people who employ traditional production methods still manage to earn a living considering it's inefficiency. the revolution i propose can produce 2 tons of palm oil in 1 hour, this capacity can be produced by locally within 5 days.

if i have a production agreement with say xyz limited to deliver 20 tons of palm oil it can be accomplished in 10 hours instead of about 2 weeks or more. the local market suffers shortages as i write resulting in high prices. even right now a liter of the product sells for 200 naira in most parts of Nigeria indicating a need for complementing efforts to reduce prices. also i am aware that 1 ton of the product sells for 350-700 us dollars internationally.

the money

if i am given USD 1,000 i will immediately approach nifor in order to get improved seeds ( tenera specie ) and go to the village to commence planting

i need USD 454,500 for purchase, shipping, installation, commissioning, and operator training.

cost of owner containers, customs clearing, forwarding to site of installation, civil engineering works, installation of suitable water supply- 200ltrs per hr per ton of ffb throughput will cost a total of 5,000,000 nigerian naira

i will also need also need 500,000 Nigerian naira to cover for initial running costs