Why Nigeria makes low profit from onion trade

The Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) expressed concern over Nigeria’s low profits from its onion trade, despite being a top producer in Africa. Producing nearly two million tons annually, most onions are sold raw, limiting export earnings. During a session in Gombe, NEPC Executive Director, Nonye Ayeni, highlighted the need for value-added onion products like paste, powder, and oil. The NEPC aims to create an Onion Export Strategy to address challenges in processing and export. With better strategies, partnerships, and investments, Nigeria could boost its onion trade and increase its non-oil export revenue.
Source: DailyTrust

Our Review
The Nigerian Export Promotion Council’s (NEPC) concerns about the low profits in Nigeria’s onion trade underscore a significant challenge in the agricultural value chain—insufficient value addition. Despite being a major onion producer in Africa, Nigeria trades 99.9% of its onions in raw form, missing out on the economic benefits that could be reaped from processed products like onion flakes, powder, and oil. This lack of value addition stifles profit margins, hinders export potential, and limits the overall contribution to national revenue.
By focusing on developing a comprehensive onion export strategy, NEPC aims to address the bottlenecks in the value chain, improve formal export processes, and enhance Nigeria’s global competitiveness in the onion market. This initiative offers a valuable opportunity for stakeholders, from farmers to processors, to collaborate and maximize the economic potential of onions.
This development highlights the need for strategic investments in processing infrastructure, quality seed selection, and global market alignment to boost profitability and foster sustainable growth.