The Nigerian Institute of Food Science and Technology has urged its members to go into large scale food manufacturing business in order to address the problem of hunger and poverty in the country.
The institute said it believes that its members, made up of food professionals, have the potentials to create wealth and also meet the nutritional needs of the people through healthy food business.
Addressing participants at a one-day Retreat, organised recently by Ikeja Zone of NIFST, in Lagos, Chief Executive Officer, Norit Consulting, Mr Joshua Oyebode, said the fast growing business in Nigeria today was the food business particularly those that connect with the poor and children.
Delivering lecture on the theme, “Food Business: Starting Small and Growing”, Oyebode told the NIFST members that going into food business with lots of health benefits was also productive and rewarding.
He explained; “Food business is very lucrative and it does not require huge amount of money to start. All you have to do is to target your audience and know what they want. Do a business that identifies with the poor and the one that children can identify with. If you want to succeed in the food industry, you must look for a business that has health benefits.”
Giving insight into how to start a business, the business consultant asked the participants to however, consider the location of raw materials, availability of raw materials, means of transportation, availability of labour, nearness to market, security, among others before establishing their business.
He urged NIFST members to take advantage of the opportunities around them and invest in food business especially now that the country is trying to become self-sufficient in some food products. He added that such investment would bring quick returns and create jobs.
Another guest speaker and Deputy Director, Registration and Regulatory Affairs of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, Mr Aina Olugbenga, urged the participants not to be afraid of registering their business with NAFDAC, stressing that the agency had removed all bureaucratic bottleneck around food registration.
The NAFDAC official noted that the agency had reviewed its registration fees by 50 per cent as part of new measures to boost Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in Nigeria.
Secretary of NIFST, Lagos State Chapter, Mr Wale Oseni, enjoined members to explore opportunities and networking provided by the institute to grow their business and advance their career.
