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As Nigeria’s population surges past 200 million, ensuring food security has become a pressing concern, with various factors competing to dominate the nation’s food systems, also referred to as the processes that control a people’s food from production to consumption.
For decades, smallholder farmers have been the backbone of the country’s food production, providing over 70% of the nation’s food needs. However, the rise of multinational industrial farming has sparked a heated debate about who will control Nigeria’s food future.
Smallholder farmers in Nigeria and Africa at large face numerous challenges, including outdated farming practices, insecurity, lack of access to credit, poor infrastructure, limited processing capacity, and an ageing population.
In recent times, Nigeria has seen a rise in industrial farming, better access to credit, modern equipment, and even processing facilities, mostly coming at the behest of industrial or large-scale farmers. These include the Obasanjo Farms, Olam Nigeria, Ekcel Farms Limited, and Godilogo Farms Limited, among several others.
Interestingly, as these points point to a shift towards more expanded agriculture, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have raised concerns about the potential impact of their activities on food sovereignty, the environment, and smallholder farmers in general.
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In a 2025 Localised Roadmap: Nigeria, titled The Just Transition from Industrial Livestock Production to Equitable, Humane and Sustainable Food Systems in Nigeria, published by Youth in Agroecology and Restoration Network (YARN), it states that current food systems and agriculture account for one-third of Global Greenhouse Gas (GHG).
The report notes that despite the benefits of livestock agriculture, key environmental, economic, and social concerns associated with industrial livestock production systems persist and in some cases are worsening, both globally and in Nigeria.
Reports indicate that emissions from animal production must decline by 50 percent by 2030 and 61 percent by 2036 to meet the targets of the Paris Agreement, noting that achieving this emissions reduction requires a deliberate, urgent, and concerted global shift towards equitable, humane, and sustainable food systems across nations, including developing countries such as Nigeria.
Speaking with Businessday, Opeyemi Elujulo, Executive Director, Youth in Agroecology and Restoration Network (YARN), while noting the benefits of large-scale industrial agriculture and the rise in multinational industrial farming, expressed deep concerns about JBS Investment.
Elujulo said the arrival of JBS in Nigeria’s meat and cattle industry will lead to competition for the limited community’s resources, environmental degradation, and an impact on smallholder farmers, who are mainly the ones said to be feeding the nation.
“JBS is a multinational company and may outcompete smallholder farmers for resources like land and water, affecting their livelihood,” he said. He added that “Large-scale farming by corporations like JBS can lead to land degradation, deforestation, and pollution, impacting biodiversity, climate, and public health. Smallholders may struggle to compete with big corporations, potentially driving them out of business and affecting their livelihood,” he added.
He maintained that “introducing young people to sustainable agriculture practices like agroecology could encourage them to engage in farming, reducing dependence on agrochemicals and imported materials.
Opeyemi stressed the need to train young farmers in sustainable practices like organic fertilisers, biopesticides, and agroforestry, which can reduce production costs and make farming more attractive.
Also speaking, Tenison Williams, Regional Director for Africa, World Animal Protection, emphasised they were not an anti-investment group but rather believed the market should create an equal playing field for all.
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The guiding principle should be transparency, fairness, and community involvement in decision-making. We want to ensure that JBS’s investment benefits both the company and the local communities,” he added.
Expressing his concerns, he said, “We are concerned about JBS’s investment model, which prioritises massive animal production over community well-being and transparency. They take away power from communities to decide on land acquisition, and their track record is not transparent.”
Williams added that “JBS has a comparative advantage in acquiring credit or loans from big banks, which they use to convince countries to partner with them. This raises concerns about the balance of power in negotiations and the potential for exploitation.”
Despite their positions, the government and the industrial and multinational sectors have differing opinions, as they believe the market is big enough for all.
According to the Director of Press and Public Relations, Ben Bem Goong, “There’s no economy that does not accommodate small farmer holders.”
“Protectionism is not the best way to go. Free enterprise is the best way to go, and this will accommodate all players, big or small,” he said.
Similarly, Ade Adefeko, Director of Corporate & Regulatory Affairs at Olam Agri, said, “In addressing the concerns of activists, there is a need to understand the concept of industrial agriculture.
“Industrial agriculture is large-scale and entails huge financial outlays by companies that adopt it, and a good example is the nucleus farm approach, which provides inputs, training, and market access to nearby smallholding farmers, enabling growers to produce a specific commodity or crop.
“In this instance or approach, the nucleus farmer benefits from centralised control and access to the larger market, while outgrowers gain crucial resources and guaranteed markets, and the smallholder farmers enjoy higher yields and better incomes.
That model, of which an example abounds in Nigeria, is what Olam Agri uses in its multi-million-dollar rice farm and mill in Rukubi, Nasarawa State,” he stated.
The 10,000-hectare farm is fully mechanised and irrigated with a rice mill that supports over 35,000 outgrowers, which links large-scale agriculture with smallholder farmers to boost rice production. It controls the quality control of a large-scale commercial farm, Olam, in this case, with the cost and scalability benefits of smallholder outgrower/networks.
The surrounding rice-growing communities are supported by Olam Agri with training, pre-financing, and agri inputs in order to improve their yields. These help strengthen food security and nutrition, support rural communities, and improve farming practices and livelihoods.
It is a win-win for both parties and should be encouraged and adopted, as it’s symbiotic in nature and scope. As a nation, food security and sovereignty should be our goal, and agribusiness companies across multiple value chains should be encouraged to play a major role.
Meanwhile, Ruth Nabagala, Programmes Director at the Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA), emphasises the nutritional value of African food and the importance of promoting agroecology.
“When we talk about agroecology, we are talking about businesses whose benefit focuses beyond profits. Agroecology focuses on human health, nutrition, environmental stewardship, and community benefit, not individual benefit, but community benefit, way beyond profit.”
Nabagala noted that the economic value of agroecology is that everyone benefits, including the environment, animals, and the community.
“We need quality food for nourishment, and we say agroecology can nourish the bodies of the world,” she says. “The focus should be on nutrition, which is medicinal, nutritious, psychologically settling, and culturally accepted.”
As Nigeria navigates the complex issue of food security and sovereignty, it’s essential to strike a balance between industrial farming and smallholder agriculture. By promoting sustainable agriculture practices, supporting smallholder farmers, and encouraging industrial farming that benefits local communities, Nigeria can ensure a food-secure future for all.
