The continued influx of tomato in raw, concentrate and other forms is adding to the challenges of many farmers in Nigeria as they are unable to sell their produce, which the tomato growers’ umbrella body is putting at a loss of about N10 billion this year alone.
Every year, farmers in Nigeria experience gluts at certain periods, forcing them to sell off at a loss in many cases, but the challenges being faced by tomato growers appears to transcend the seasonal gluts.
“This season alone our members lost almost ten billion naira due to poor market and lack of guaranteed off takers,” said Sani Yadakwari, national general secretary, Tomato Association of Nigeria, in a statement made available to BusinessDay.
Yadakwari said further that “Dangote and savannah food who are supposed to be major off takers of tomato can no longer afford to, due to the lack of concentrate Tomato paste market. This is because all the companies that used to produce Tomato in sachet and tins and any other forms for domestic consumption prefer to import it from China and other countries, even though NAFDAC confirmed that the imported triple concentrate tomato is not good for human consumption.”
In 2017, the Federal Executive Council approved the Tomato policy with strategic provisions for stimulating the Agro allied industry, increasing the local production of fresh tomato and tomato concentrate, reducing post harvest loses and generally contracting the incentive to import tomato concentrate. Part of the policy as highlighted by Yadakwari stated that:
1) No form of processed Tomato should be allowed into the country
2) No form of Tomato paste, fresh or concentrate should come to the country through land borders
3) The concentrate Tomato imported through sea ports should attract 50 percent duty and $1,500 levy per metric tone
“But since then, this policy was not implemented by the federal ministry of finance in connivance with cabals and the Nigerian custom service for interests best known to them,” Yadakwari alleges.
“Unfortunately when we approached them (Nigerian custom service) to know the motive behind non implementation of the policy, we were told that between the date the policy was approved and the date they were given the gazette of the policy for the implementation, exceeded the stipulated period of 90 days. So they cannot work on it because it has expired,” the statement read.
This claim comes after a BusinessDay report which highlighted the obstacle posed by the Customs Service that has continually frustrated efforts to make agricultural machinery increasingly available in the country.
Agricultural equipment are supposed to attract zero tariff, implying they can be imported without payment of customs duties but this is yet to become a reality particularly for greenhouse equipment.
The price-based measures for tomato policy, which took effect in May 2017, stated that Greenhouse equipment is classified as Agricultural equipment and should attract Zero percent import duty. However, nine months later, the policy has remained comatose.
“The Greenhouse concession has not been respected by the Nigerian Custom Service,” said Emmanuel Ijewere, chairman Best Foods Limited.
“They (Customs service) still insist on a letter from the Federal Minister of Agriculture every time you bring in a shipment. Such letters take upwards of 3 months; meanwhile the green houses are accumulating demurrage that is usually far higher than the duty waived. Apparently this defeats the intention of bringing down the price of a green house. Actual it is now worse of,” bemoaned Ijewere, who is also vice president of the Nigeria Agribusiness Group (NABG).
Humphrey Otalor, marketing communications manager, Dizengoff Nigeria, which holds a significant market share in agricultural equipment imports, also corroborated the views of non-compliance by the customs service.
“Even after the Federal Government has announced the zero percent duty on greenhouse equipment, it is still yet to be implemented by the relevant government agency (Customs service), several months after.
“Therefore, importers of greenhouses are still required to pay the 20% duty outside the government mandatory 5%VAT, because of the simple excuse, that HS Code on greenhouses still attract 20% duty, and until it is corrected on the HS code, the Custom (asserts it) has the constitutional right to continue with the 20% charges,” said Otalor.
Joseph Attah, spokesperson for the Nigerian Customs Service, said in his agency’s defence at the time that “Green house is Zero percent, while prefabricated buildings are 20 percent. Some people bring the prefab in the name of green house. Green houses are strictly for agriculture, while the prefab houses have different usage in different circumstances “
CALEB OJEWALE
