The hibiscus flower, locally referred to as “zobo” in Nigeria, has emerged as one of the country’s thriving export commodities.
Following the recent lifting of its export ban, there has been a significant surge in production, with numerous farmers actively participating in its cultivation. This growth has occurred despite limited government intervention, highlighting the resilience and potential of Nigeria’s hibiscus industry on the global stage.
According to dailytrust.com, the commodity was banned by the Mexican government sometime in 2017 following a pest infestation found in some of the consignment shipped from Nigeria to Mexico. The ban left many farmers and exporters technically out of business, causing job losses in the agriculture value chain.
It is on record that since the ban took effect, Nigeria lost significant revenue, as many exporters and farmers suffered heavy financial losses because of the number of rejected consignments from Nigeria to other countries which culminated to a decrease in the number of farmers producing the commodity.
This happened at a time when the hibiscus flower in export markets held great promise, especially for an economy that sought to diversify from oil.
Economic indices showed that the ban by Mexico which imported about 85 per cent of Nigeria’s hibiscus rendered the sector ineffective and unattractive to investors and farmers.
However, after a series of interventions by the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS), exportation of the commodity returned after the ban was lifted in 2022. It was gathered that after the lift of the ban, Nigeria discovered that its stands to benefit a lot considering the huge investment made in the sector through its value chain trend, as well as foreign exchange (forex) earnings.
Similarly, after the lift of the ban, hibiscus farmers became so involved in the production of the flower, with Jigawa State being the highest producer in the country.
It was gathered that at present, one tonne of hibiscus is now selling at N1.3m to N1.7m. The current price of the commodity has made it very endearing to farmers to the extent that a lot of them have abandoned other crops.
Statistics have shown that small scale farmers and producers in rural areas constitute about 75 per cent of the hibiscus cultivating population in the country.
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A Kano-based hibiscus farmer, Najiú Isa, said that after the ban, it was discovered by farmers that hibiscus was subjected to a lot of uses due to its diversity in usage and as such there had been an increase in demand for the crop from European, Asian and North Americans clients, and that internal demand became the order of the day in most markets across the producing states, with Kano serving as the deport for its business.
Another farmer, Usman Abdullahi, stated that after the ban, the country witnessed a swift shift in the hibiscus industry as the commodity’s economic importance became so glaring to many farmers, noting that it became one of the key raw materials demanded in the global confectionery’s industry, adding that many uses of the commodity that ranged from medical to industrial made the crop a very profitable commodity. Abdulkarim Sulaiman is an exporter of hibiscus, and according to him, even though the era of banning Nigeria from exporting hibiscus to Mexico is over, if care is not taken the business will still go into limbo because the demand is becoming so overwhelming and farmers lack the needed support from government, adding that hibiscus farmers really need government’s intervention to enable them remain in business.
It was based on this trend that the largest hibiscus fumigation centre in Africa was established in Kano State to strengthen its production in line with best practices for exportation. The centre is owned by an indigenous company, Mumin Foods and Drugs Limited.
The Chairman of Mumin Foods and Drugs Limited, Alhaji Abdullahi Usman, told Daily Trust on Sunday that his company was one of the few businesses that were currently championing the revolution in hibiscus exportation in the country through ensuring a strong adherence to global best practices.
The also revealed that though excelling on its own, the company was able to gather momentum without access to any form of loan to conduct and commit huge resources to get it right.
