LAGOS, Nigeria(VOICE OF NAIJA)- Ogun State has taken a decisive step toward food security with the launch of a 5,000-birds-per-day poultry processing facility designed to boost local production and reduce Nigeria’s heavy reliance on imported chicken.
The facility, located at Ajegunle Farm Settlement in Odeda Local Government Area, can process an additional 1.3 million birds annually, a scale the state government says will strengthen the poultry value chain while creating jobs for young people.
Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Security, Bolu Owotomo, disclosed this during a tour of key agricultural projects across Odeda and Yewa South local government areas. The visit marked the first phase of his statewide inspection of ongoing and completed initiatives under the World Bank–supported Ogun State Economic Transformation Project.
“For instance, the recently constructed 5,000-birds-per-day poultry processing facility at Ajegunle Farm Settlement, Odeda Local Government Area, has the capacity to process an additional 1.3 million birds annually. This will significantly help to reduce poultry importation and also provide jobs for our teeming youth population,” Owotomo said.
The Ajegunle Farm Settlement has been positioned as a dedicated poultry hub, hosting about 400 resident farmers. Supporting infrastructure such as blast freezers, cold rooms, waste processing units, warehouses with office spaces and poultry pens with a 20,000-bird capacity has already begun attracting private investment.
Owotomo revealed that a private investor recently completed a 13,000-capacity poultry pen at the site, reinforcing its growing commercial appeal.
Beyond poultry, the commissioner said the state has completed 28 agricultural projects in the last two years through OGSTEP, alongside other interventions including the Value Chain Development Programme, OG-CARES and Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones.
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“These projects are aimed at increasing food productivity, improving farmers’ livelihoods and reducing post-harvest losses in Nigeria, which are currently estimated at N3.5 trillion annually,” he noted.
Owotomo also highlighted the wider consumption gap driving Nigeria’s poultry challenge. He said per capita chicken consumption in the country ranges between 1.7kg and 2kg, far below figures recorded in Ghana, South Africa and Brazil, despite Nigeria importing an estimated 70 percent of its poultry needs.
At the Eweje Farm Institute, the commissioner inspected newly constructed poultry pens capable of producing 10,000 birds each, alongside residential facilities for workers. He said sustained investment in infrastructure would further cement Ogun State’s ambition to become Nigeria’s leading poultry production hub.
The tour also took the team to Odo Fufu in Ilaro, Yewa South Local Government Area, where a cassava processing facility has been established to serve multiple farming communities. According to Owotomo, the project is expected to improve value addition and raise farmers incomes.
“On sustainability, we are encouraging farmers to take ownership of these facilities. There will be strong monitoring and evaluation by the ministry, alongside public-private partnerships, to ensure long-term viability,” he said.
Officials and sector leaders echoed similar optimism. Special Adviser to the Governor on Agriculture and Food Security, Dr Angel Adelaja, and Permanent Secretary, Mrs Kehinde Jokotoye, said the projects would boost productivity and strengthen the state’s economy. Meanwhile, local stakeholders described the developments as unprecedented, stressing that full utilization could significantly lift agricultural output in Ogun State and beyond.
The expansion comes against the backdrop of Nigeria’s longstanding ban on imported frozen poultry, a policy aimed at protecting local farmers but undermined by widespread smuggling. With demand still outpacing supply, Ogun State’s growing processing capacity signals a renewed push to close that gap through local production rather than imports.
