… Tomatoes, Dairy, Meat, Fish Among Hardest Hit
Daud Olatunji
Nigeria lost up to N5 trillion to post-harvest inefficiencies in 2025, with perishable food items such as tomatoes, dairy, meat and fish accounting for the bulk of the waste, the Organisation for Technology Advancement of Cold Chain in West Africa has disclosed.
The President of OTACCWA, Mr Alexander Isong, said the country recorded between N3.5 trillion and N5 trillion in losses last year due to poor cold storage systems, weak logistics infrastructure and inadequate refrigerated transportation.
Isong, who spoke in Lagos during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, revealed that Nigeria lost an estimated 30 to 40 million metric tonnes of food across major agricultural value chains in 2025.
According to him, the losses cut across highly perishable commodities including tomatoes, vegetables, fruits, dairy products, meat, fish and root crops.
“In monetary terms, this translates to approximately N3.5 trillion to N5 trillion in economic losses. These are products that had already been cultivated, harvested and transported before they were eventually wasted,” he said.
He explained that the development represents not just food waste but a direct erosion of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product, noting that farmers had already invested heavily in land preparation, seedlings, fertilisers, labour, irrigation and transportation.
“When such volumes are lost due to inadequate cold storage and weak logistics systems, the country is effectively losing value that has already been created within the economy,” Isong stated.
He warned that without a functional and certified cold chain system, Nigeria would continue to grapple with food inflation, declining farmers’ incomes and limited export competitiveness in the global market.
Describing cold chain infrastructure as the “missing link” between agricultural productivity and economic prosperity, Isong stressed that post-harvest losses should no longer be viewed solely as an agricultural challenge but as a broader infrastructure and economic crisis.
He identified inadequate cold storage facilities as the primary obstacle to reducing food waste, urging the Federal Government and private investors to prioritise investment in refrigerated trucks, aggregation centres and modular cold rooms nationwide.
“Cold chain is an integral part of agriculture. Without sufficient investment in storage and temperature-controlled logistics, the sector’s growth and potential will remain severely constrained,” he added.
Stakeholders say curbing post-harvest losses could significantly improve food availability, stabilise prices, boost farmers’ earnings and enhance Nigeria’s overall economic performance.
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