Dantata Foods in Partnership with RegenFarm UK Pioneers Regenerative Agriculture in Nigeria.

By Sunusi Bature Dawakin Tofa

One of Africa’s leading food processing and Agribusiness companies, Dantata Foods and Allied Products Company Limited (Nigeria) in partnership with the UK based innovative and Agric-technology firm RegenFARM Limited and the Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office of the British Government under its Agricultural sector intervention (LINKS Project) are delighted to announce the pioneering of Regenerative Agriculture project, the first of its kind in Nigeria.

This tripartite partnership is aimed at increasing quality food production, enhancing export opportunities of Nigeria’s Agricultural commodities, and improve soil fertility, nutrients content, and organic matter. A technology platform has been developed and it is designed to assist with the management of various food value chains, offering complete traceability from farmers to end-users (customers).

It is a fact that Nigeria faces the challenges of soil degradation through flooding, erosion, and continued cultivation which led to lower productivity of farm produce in the country; the consistent application of inorganic fertilizer, pesticides, and weed control chemicals have been discovered to have negative implication to the sustainability of farmlands over the years.

With a financing commitment from The Central Bank of Nigeria under the Prime Anchor Borrowers Programme, the consortium of the private sector and government bodies would rollout an innovative approach to support smallholder farmers on the new technics of Regenerative Agriculture practices in the country.

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Over two hundred thousand farmers (200,000) are expected to be engaged by the initiative on a long-term basis across a number of Nigerian states; which includes Kano, Cross River, Jigawa, Kaduna, Bauchi, Katsina, Kebbi, Benue, Niger, and Plateau.

Governor Ben Ayade and Alhaji Tajuddeen Dantata

In a partnership meeting, the Managing Director/CEO of RegenFARM Limited Mr.  Jason Haywarda said Regenerative Agriculture would be an all-embracing opportunity for the Agro-processing industry in the country, as the smallholder farmer out-growers productivity, profitability, and resilience to climate change will be greatly enhanced.

While responding,  the Chairman/CEO Dantata Foods and Allied Company Limited Alh.  Tajudeen Aminu Dantatav confirmed that the partnership has already galvanized access to markets in the UK and other parts of Europe for the organic commodities produced under the Regenerative Agriculture practices.

The Chairman CEO Dantata Foods Alh.Tajuddeen Dantata and the MD Regnet FARM UK Mr. Jason Hayward

Dantata Foods & Allied Products Limited is a Nigerian Company based in Kano. It is involved in Agricultural Production, manufacturing, and processing. It is also involved in the export and distribution of Agro-allied products, as well as Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG).

Incorporated in 2005 to deal in agricultural products for exports and local distribution, DFAP has over the years diversified its portfolio of business interests and activities. In addition to overseeing the import and export, cleaning, and transport of products across Nigeria. The company is involved in the production and packaging of food and beverages.

Dantata Cross Rivers Site

DFAP is one of the leading companies in the export of grains from Nigeria with a solid reputation among exporters, local buyers, market traders, and farmers, particularly for sesame seeds, groundnut, Soy beans and sorghum. Commodity export is one of our core businesses with a long history in Nigeria and we foresee an even brighter future in the sector.

The long-term investments and plans of the company indicate that positive and continuous growth in the sector is expected over the coming years.  The Company intends to expand its processing operations with Soya beans, Rice, and Animal Feed Mills.  Dantata Foods and Allied Products Company Limited also manages a number of farmers in various States in Nigeria to cultivate over One Hundred thousand Hectares (100,000 ha) of specific crops.

Dantata Foods have aggregated and monitored farmers in the aspect of livestock and animal husbandry. With all these achievements, the Company wants to build a strong relationship with the Central Bank of Nigeria to stand out as a reliable implementing partner for farmers’ aggregation and Agro-allied development projects.

On the other hand, RegenFARM Limited, UK

offers an alternative design and decision-making tool for farmers, consultants, and food supply chain companies seeking ways to organically produce food using regenerative agriculture methods.

The company based in the UK is an Innovation Integrator SaaS Platform and marketplace, where you will find all the services and products you need in one place to make your regenerative agriculture farm design successful.

RegenFARM Platform is a combination of a consulting service and an Agritech tool; it uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to offer a superior digital farm design consulting capability. It is quicker, cheaper, more accurate, and scalable than conventional services and is able to simulate, calculate, and manage the change processes to a regenerative system.

The use of Regenerative Agriculture inherently enhances on-farm biodiversity and water storage capacity, and therefore RegenFARM Platform offers a cross-over to other complementary industries and sectors which are focused on, for example, conservation of wildlife and the retention of rainwater in the landscape to rehydrate arid landscapes.

Sanusi Bature is the General Manager, Corporate Services Dantata Foods and Allied Products Company Limited