Palm Kernel and PKO Business; Trading Profitably

Palm kernel/ Palm kernel oil (PKO) business is a highly lucrative business but one that requires a lot of knowledge and experience.

Palm kernel is largely traded and sought for, due to its highly in – demand oil – Palm kernel oil, known as PKO.

You can invest in Palm kernel and PKO trading and investment either by directly being involved in the sourcing, milling, storage, transportation and marketing or by indirectly investing in those who are already skilled in the business.

Most newbie think that all is needed to be successful in the Palm kernel and PKO business is simply having the needed capital to begin. Unfortunately a lot of these people who share this same mind set most often as it had been the case, go on to lose most if not all their start up capital and become frustrated in the end.

Palm kernel trading and business is a very lucrative one. With the palm kernels being available in bulk supply mainly during the dry seasons and more so with the very high demand for the products by secondary processors and industries, coupled with the insufficient production of palm fruits, it is an investment with an assured high return on investment (ROI).

However, as with every investment that is high yielding, there are a lot of pitfalls to be avoided and basic rudiments to be learnt before venturing into the business.

As the Palm kernel season gradually approaches, be sure to educate yourself well enough to tap into this highly lucrative venture, especially in this era of low returns on financial derivatives and fixed deposits at the banks as well as difficult FX regime for import dependent investments.

Some of the following areas must be well understood and a prospective investor in the Palm kernel trade grounded in their workings to be successful. They include;

• Funding; How to allocate resources to maximize profit

• Sourcing; Where to source cheaper.

• Quality Assessment; How to determine quality of kernels

• Measurement Standards

• Pricing

• Tips to avoid being cheated by the kernel merchants

• Maximising profit through storage

• Determining moisture content

• Sorting techniques

• Measurement Standards

• Transportation

• Marketing

Cat Fish Farming & Smoking(Processing) Seminar

Fish farming like other business has its pros and cons. And truthfully it is a very lucrative and yet a money draining business.

I have read articles about how lucrative the business is and how to invest and reap millions. All I do is just to laugh on reading such article. All they want is just for u to buy their manual and make money. Surprisingly most of them don’t have a farm of their own, they are computer farmers who don’t have any experience whatsoever in the business..

Catfish fish farming is very profitable but highly sensitive; therefore so much caution must be taken to avoid making mistakes that can cost so much loss. Just as there are numerous benefits, there are also problems involved which results from inadequate enlightenment and proper caution.

Losses resulting from mistakes and poor management are usually more fatal in catfish farms than in other case.

Some of the key areas where new fish farmers must be well grounded and informed to avoid loses include;

• Fingerlings for stocking. This is one aspect for the failure of fish farmers. Most hatcheries select the best (shooters) for themselves and sell runts to farmers.

• Pond Construction.

• Pond disinfection.

• Stocking Techniques.

• Avoiding overstocking of your pond.

• Control of environmental hazards

• Feeding your Fish rightly.

• Feed selection and formulation.

• Avoiding water contamination and pollution.

• Marketing (Most farmers rely on same conventional marketing techniques)

• Livestock Insurance

Greenhouse Farming; The way to go

Greenhouse farming technology is an innovation that is gradually making its way into the Nigerian agricultural sector.

It is farming under a confined controlled environment as against the traditional open field farming. The structure can be made of glass or polythene covers depending on availability and cost of materials. These structure ranges in size.

Greenhouse is essentially a controlled environment limiting the devastating effects of insect pests and diseases that ravage vegetables including tomatoes. It is not rain-fed but brain-fed, as it comes complete with a customized drip irrigation system. With little amount of land space and water, you are sure to get a yield far higher than your traditional open field production.

With greenhouse farming a farmer can have prolonged production period, efficient water utilization, low cost of labour (that is spraying, weeding and watering) High quality of crop produce, timely crop production, and less exposure to chemical toxin.

To go into greenhouse farming one must have basic knowledge on the certain areas in order to yield profit and to avoid loss.

Here are some of the things you should know.

• Site selection

• Type of crops that can be grown in a green house

• Type of greenhouse structure and which is suitable for you

• Proper building materials

• Irrigation process

• Crops management under Greenhouse conditions

• Greenhouse maintenance

• Appropriate production facilities

• Fertigation

• Crop spacing

• Temperature regulation and environmental control.

Locally replicated greenhouse technology has been proven to provide a low cost alternative to the imported greenhouse structures marketed by companies in Nigeria.

7 Agro Commodities With Sure High Returns (ROI)

Agric commodities trading and investment is an agribusiness enterprise that has come to stay in Nigeria.

As the dry season is gradually setting in, below are some of the Agro commodities that would sure yield optimum profit for any investor and start ups who venture into trading the commodities with the requisite knowledge, experience and capital.

  

1. Raw Cashew Nuts.
 
Raw Cashew Nuts (RCN) is a money spinner. You can invest in Raw Cashew nuts for either local trade or export depending on your capital. Also Raw Cashew Nuts can be processed into the highly sought for Cashew kernels with high domestic and international demand.


2. Palm Oil

With the high demand of the commodity in Nigeria Palm Oil is a sure money spinner for any agro commodities investor. Potential investors should enter the palm oil business during the dry season, when prices are relatively cheaper and supply abundant.


3. Palm Kernel

 Palm Kernel is a by product of the Oil Palm, specifically the palm fruit. It is highly sought after commodity due to its widely used Palm Kernel Oil (PKO), which is in high demand by industries and manufacturing sector.


4.Palm Kernel Oil (PKO)

I call it “the new oil”. It is gotten from the Palm Kernel. Also a money spinner for knowledgeable and well informed investors and start ups.


5. GINGER

The Nigerian ginger is highly sought for. The demand for ginger in Nigeria outweighs its production. It is a seasonal Agro commodity that has a wide range of domestic and commercial value and uses.

You can trade your ginger locally and it is also highly sought for in the international market, hence its export value. Most importantly you can go ahead to add value in the raw ginger by processing into other ginger products.


6. GARLIC

Like Ginger, garlic is another very profitable agro commodity found in Nigeria. It has local as well as export trade value.

The Nigerian Garlic is among the best in the world. Investors can also position themselves to profit in this highly untapped agro commodity market.

7. SOYA BEANS.

 Nigeria’s current demand for Soybean outweighs its current production.

It is highly sought for in the animal feed industry and also of high demand in the local market for its high nutritional benefit and domestic use.

Others include cocoa seeds, sesame seed, shea butter, hibiscus etc.

However, with these commodities, every new and prospective investor must be well informed in the area of sourcing, measurement, pricing, quality determination, storage, local trading tips and avoiding the usual market antics of merchants.

Also knowing how to make more through storage, processing and packaging of these commodities is important for optimum profit.

The good news about Agro commodities investment is that you can fully engage in this business and keep your full time work,

Investment Opportunities in Shea nut

Nigeria is the leading producer of Shea nut and butter in the world. However due to issues around quality, the nation is yet to fully tap into the benefit of the expanding market for Shea nut and butter.

The oil content is the most crucial element of the shea nut as that component is an important ingredient in the composition of the shea butter that goes into Cocoa Butter Equivalents and other by-products.

SOURCING

 
Shea nut and shea products are mainly produced in Kwara, Katsina, Plateau, Kogi, Oyo, Benue, Edo, Zamfara, Taraba, Borno, Niger, Nasarawa, Kebbi, Sokoto, and Adamawa states.

PRODUCTION STATISTICS

 
Estimated National Production is 500,000 MT annually, about 3% of the national production is exported.

USES

 
Shea butter is mainly used as cooking oil, in the making of chocolate and candle and as moisturizers in the cosmetic industry.

It is used in the treatment of skin disorders like eczema, burns, rashes, stretch marks, acne, wrinkles, skin discolorations, itching and other skin problems.

It also provides natural protection from the sun’s UV rays. It is also an excellent agent for softening skin. It can also be used to maintain hair moisturization especially in dry hair.

PRICING

 
In the international market, the price per ton for Shea butter packed in 20 pound dark plastic sacks or 50 kilo dark plastic containers or coated steel drums ranges from $1,800 to 2,800/MT depending on the quality, while the local market price per tonne ranges from N180,000 to N250,000

The price of Shea nuts and butter follows the movement in the price of cocoa beans and butter.

EXPORT MARKET

 
Major destinations for Nigeria’s Sheanut and Butter are the Europe, United States and Japan.

EXPORT SEASON

 
The export season for Shea nut commences by June and ends in October.

HARVESTING PERIOD

 
The harvesting period for Shea Nuts in Nigeria, runs from July till about November. The fruits are allowed to ripen on the tree and then drop to the ground.

STORAGE

 
Nut that has been well dried can store well for up to 5 years without spoiling. Storage should aim at maintaining the quality through the storage period as well as eliminating pests that could destroy the nuts. Ware house at the appropriate location are needed.

PROCESSING

 
Shea Butter is produced by steaming the Shea fruit for the kernel inside to shrink away from the shell to prevent the kernel from damaging. After the shells are cracked and the kernels are extracted. They are placed in the sun to dry for a prolonged period in order for the shea nuts to maintain a long shelf life of 5 years. After drying, the best nuts will be sorted out to for crushing and left till the next day. Thereafter, other processes like Roasting of Crushed Shea Kernels, Milling, Kneading, Boiling, Filtration and Solidification, Packaging and Storage will commence.

MARKETING

 
Main buyers of Sheanut and Sheabutter are chocolate manufacturers, Cosmetic Industries, Pharmaceutical Industries as well as households.

INVESTMENT SUMMARY

 
Production
Processing
Export
Storage
Marketing