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Onion Business, a Major Contributor in Job Creation Globally – NOPPMAN Chairman
The chairman of National Onion Producers and Marketers Association of Nigeria (NOPPMAN), Malam Aliyu NaTasamu, has described onion business as one of the major contributors in job creation globally.
He pointed that the union is the apex of all stakeholders in the onion value in Nigeria, saying that the association has been formed, nurtured, and launched by the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment (FMITI), The Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (FMAFS), Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), and other relevant MDAs, in line with its mandate in the promotion of the agricultural commodity value chain for food security, job creation, and export.
Aliyu further said that the association has its membership spread across the 36 states of the federation, including FCT, Abuja, and also member of regional body of onion sector in West and Central Africa which consist of 22 countries.
“Onion is an important vegetable crop which its distinctive flavour and medical content is appreciated all over the globe, as there is no household that doesn’t consume it.
“Onion bulbs can be transformed into onion powder, which serves as raw material in the production of maggi , ketchup, noodles seasonings, onion oils, onion jam, flakes and so on by various food industries. It is also used for pharmaceutical products, because of its many possible health benefits which includes management of obesity, heart diseases and cancer, prevalent in our society today, due to its high vitamins, minerals and anti-oxidants content.
“Nigeria has the best onion in the world, the basement complex in soils along the River Basin has helped to increase the allusion content which is responsible for its strong pungency.
“Despite this competitive advantage in onion production and being the largest onion producing country in sub-Saharan Africa, Nigeria produces 2 million metric tons,” he explained.
The chairman disclosed that Nigeria exports onions to countries like Niger Republic, Ghana, Burkina Faso, Benin Republic, Mali, Cote D’Ivoire, South Africa Cameron, Chad, Congo, Central African Republic and so on.
