The Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) says that an estimated 931 million tons of food, or 17 percent of total food available to consumers in 2019, went into waste, that is, at the retail and home levels.
FAO confirms that 14 percent of the World’s food is lost from post-harvest up to (but not including) the retail level, saying, “As we improve our estimates, we will know whether the order of magnitude of the problem is comparable to earlier estimates of around 1/3 of the World’s food lost or wasted every year.”
It indicates that the loss is more pronounced in developing economies with poor facilities for proper harvest, transportation, cold chain and storage facilities.
In Nigeria, according to the former Minister of Agriculture, Chief Audu Ogbeh, about 30 percent to 40 percent of food crops produced in Nigeria were ultimately lost and wasted.
It is in addressing the problem of food processing and preservation in Nigeria that the Nigeria-USA Chamber of Commerce (NUSACC) is hosting its 1st Virtual International Trade and Investment Summit.
The virtual Summit, hosted in collaboration with the Collaborative Chambers Alliance (CCA), a 18-member Chambers of Commerce group and the Cleveland Public Library is scheduled visually on October 27, 2021, in Cleveland, Ohio.
The Keynote Speaker at the invitation-only event is Dr. ABC Orjiako, a Nigerian industrialist with vested interests in almost all sectors of Nigerian economy including Oil and Gas.
He is the Chairman of Seplat Energy, Plc, the only Nigerian company listed on the British Stock Exchange and based in Ikoyi- Lagos Other special guests and speakers include, the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to the United States,
Dr. Mrs. Uzoma Emenike and Alhaji Sani Dangote, President /Vice President Nigeria Agribusiness Group/Dangote Group Plc. President, Collaborative Chambers Alliance (CCA), Mr. David Nedrich, and Executive Director, Greater Cleveland Chinese Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Su He, Esq.
Nigerian food processing and preservation businesses cover a series of industrial activities directed at the processing, conversion, preparation, preservation, and packaging of foodstuffs for human consumption. There are several companies involved in the processing of food products in Nigeria, each having different specialization.
Speaking about the event the CEO of NUSACC, Mr. Lee Kareem said that about 200 participants representing various Nigerian entrepreneurs and those seeking information about the processing and packing of Nigerian food products to international markets especially to the United States are anticipated to attend the virtual summit.
He remarked that the Nigeria-USA Chamber of Commerce has hosted 5 summits since its inception, and this is the first to be hosted virtually.
He anticipated that the outcome of the summit will stimulate knowledge and interest in the Nigerian agricultural – food processing and preservation sectors looking outward to generate foreign exchange in a country that is heavily dependent on export of petroleum resources for its foreign exchange.
Mr. Kareem explained that NUSACC is a member of Collaborative Chambers Alliance (CCA) comprising of more than 18-member Chambers of Commerce in Ohio and International Chambers such like the Chinese American, French American, British American, Swedish American Chambers of Commerce that are involved in the activities of the Chambers, meaning that it is open land mine for exploration by exporters and entrepreneurs in Nigeria and the United States wishing to collaborate and do business.
