By Agbonavbare Victor Omoregbe

Nigeria has an estimated eleven million tonnes of perishable produce requiring cold storage, but less than 20,000 tonnes of long-term capacity, stakeholders have said.

They blamed short-term financing for blocking investment needed to cut post-harvest losses.

Speaking at the 10th Sustainability Table Series in Lagos, about 400,000 tonnes of onions, showing the scale of the gap.

Niran-Aluko is building a 20,000-tonne facility in Sokoto that can keep produce for eight to 10 months and cut losses to five per cent, but said it is small against national need.

He said the model will work with cooperatives and aggregators, not individual farmers, and may need government subsidy to stay affordable. He added that many Nigerian investors seek quick returns, not long-term infrastructure.

Country Director, Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition, Dr. Michael Ojo, said cold-chain needs patient capital.

Ojo also  said Nigeria must move from just growing more food to fixing the whole system — aggregation, logistics, processing, markets and nutrition — including biofortified crops and fortified staples, plus demand creation for nutritious food.

On her part, Founder, Century 21 Foundation, Princess Kemdi Chika-Okafor, called for decentralised, solar-powered hubs near aggregation centres and markets, not one large warehouse.

She said pay-as-you-go fees would help smallholders and traders afford storage, while partnerships with NGOs and public institutions could provide cheaper finance.