Data acquired from the Malaysian Palm Oil Council, shows that between January and September 2023, Nigeria's palm oil imports from Malaysia reached a significant 234,324 metric tons.
In comparison, during the same period in 2022, only 141,786 metric tons were imported. This substantial increase amounts to an additional 92,538 metric tons.
The report further identifies India, China, Kenya, Netherlands, Japan, and Turkey as Nigeria's top ten major importers of palm oil as measures implemented by the Nigerian government to boost local crude palm oil production, including a 35% tariff (10% duty and 25% levy) on palm oil imports.
Despite these efforts to safeguard the domestic palm oil industry and stimulate its growth, Nigerians still seem to prefer imported palm oil due to a considerable gap between supply and demand.
Experts estimate Nigeria's palm oil output at 900,000 to 1.3 million metric tons, while imports are estimated to cost over N500 billion annually. Given a national demand of 2.1 million metric tons, the supply deficit stands at approximately 800,000 metric tons.
As reported earlier by The PUNCH, Nigeria is yet to attain food sufficiency, as highlighted by Kabir Ibrahim, the National President of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria.
