Ponmo business is a very lucrative. Some persons who are into this business are living large because of the huge profit therein. Whether it is sold in kanda form (dry skin or salted skin) or as ponmo the gains in both are very attractive. ADEOLA TUKURU reports.
In Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), the sale and consumption of ponmo is currently experiencing an extraordinary boom following the spate of the economic situation, Ronke Onile , a trader in Garki modern market recounts her gains. Ponmo is a special delicacy in Nigeria that is eaten by many from the south to the north, east and west. The rich, the poor, adult, children and the youths eat it. In fact poor homes used pomo to cook in place of red meat due to the economic crash caused by the Coronavirus pandemic.
The taste and the feelings gotten while eating ponmo is something to desire as you will want to eat it again and again.
Many Nigerians, especially Ronke, a native of Osun state now sells fresh ponmo as a lucrative business.
Ronke, in chat with Business Starter, says the business is more lucrative than ever before, witnessing increased patronage.
It will be observed that most homes are now preparing a lot more ponmo with pepper soup and other assorted delicacies. According to her, instead sitting at home and waiting for her husband to provide for the whole family, she would rather prefer to assist her husband in the business.
She said she now spends longer hours in the market because the ponmo are in high demand.
Health benefits
There has been an outcry by some persons especially the health institutions (medical experts) that the consumption of ponmo is unhealthy. They condemn the claim that eating of ponmo by the elderly is good as they cannot eat red meat.
According to them animal skin has not yet been medically proven to have nutritional value. They believe that it is actually unhealthy to eat ponmo.
Others argued that ponmo itself does not cause any harm to the body but the manner at which they are processed or preserved.
Some sellers use harmful chemicals to preserve them. While some uses tyre to burn them. But all things being equal if proper hygienic conditions are carried out then ponmo should be an interesting delicacy to consume.
Even with the huge cry many people are still consuming ponmo in fact in 2014 when there was a rumour that the Federal Government of Nigeria was going to ban the consumption of ponmo so many people were angry at such intentions
How ponmo is prepared
Ponmo can be very nice when prepared with African Salad, pepper ponmo or for pottage foods. In the southern part of Nigeria, like Akwa Ibom/Cross River states almost every home uses ponmo to cook soup. In fact your soup is not complete without ponmo, especially if you are cooking afang or edikang ikong soup. People prefer ponmo for diverse reasons:
Ponmo is a diet rich in fibre which helps in stabilizing blood sugar levels as it slows down the rate of glucose absorption into the body. It also helps to lower blood cholesterol levels, which helps in reducing the risk of heart disease contrary to the opinion that it does not give or add anything to the body.
Its high demand
Kanda is high in demand. Check those who are dealing on ponmo business hardly carry them back home, there is always market for it.
Ponmo business is very profitable you can be making between #2,000-#3,000 from one piece assuming you are selling 100 pieces every week do the mathematics and thank me later. It can be more than that depending on the season and location.
It provides employment. The job that is in kanda business requires people (workers) at every point in time, ranging from the loaders, drivers, roasters, sellers etc.
Things needed to prepare ponmo
She explained that Firewood, water, bowls, sticks for turning the kanda to different sides, tripod stand and wire gage. Others are knife, iron sponge etc are what is essentially needed.
According to her, after burning the kanda, do not soak them immediately; allow them to get cold maybe between 4-5hrs before soaking them in water for two days this is to allow them to completely soak in water for it to be soft and big.
Locate restaurants, hotels, institutions and individuals to sell for. Join association of kanda sellers so you can sell where others are selling as they don’t allow non members to sell with them.
Challenges in Business
Ronke said trucks breaking down on the way sometimes more than a week causes delay in the business and capital to go into ponmo business in a large scale is also a major challenges.
FG on approval of loan for farmers
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has approved the disbursement of about N75 billion as loan to farmers in the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) under the Nigerian Incentive-Based Risk Sharing in Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL).
The loan guarantee scheme is a public-private sector initiative set up to transform the country’s agricultural sector. It was initiated by the apex bank, the Bankers’ Committee and the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, to guarantee 75 per cent loans provided by Deposit Money Banks (DPB) to farmers as part of efforts to transform the country’s agricultural sector.
Guarantee issuance to farmers through commercial banks
The Head of NIRSAL Project Implementation Office under the Development Finance Department of the CBN, Jude Uzonwanne, who spoke on the role of NIRSAL in Abuja, told the Minister of State for the Federal Capital Territory, Oloye Akinjide, that the guarantee would be issued to farmers through commercial banks and other financial institutions.
“NIRSAL would mobilize financing for Nigerian agribusiness by using credit guarantees to address the risk of default,” Mr. Uzonwanne said.
“NIRSAL is a flexible financing tool designed to change the behaviour of financial institutions.
“It covers all crops and livestock activities in Nigeria, while driving improved investment outcomes and job creation. It is also building on a legacy of previous CBN interventions in agriculture that has helped create thousands of jobs.”
Mr. Uzonwanne said the programme was designed to create access to finance to farmers by integrating end-to-end agriculture value chains, such as input producers, farmers, agro dealers, agro processors and industrial manufacturers with agricultural financing value chains – loan product development, credit distribution, loan origination, managing and pricing for risk, and loan disbursement.
“The integration is driven by NIRSAL’s 5 pillars, particularly the Risk Sharing Pillar and the Technical Assistance pillars, such as Risk sharing Facility, allocated ?45 billion, Insurance Facility (?4.5 billion), Technical assistance facility (?9 billion), Agricultural bank rating scheme (?1.5 billion), and Bank incentive mechanism (?15 billion).
“NIRSAL will share risks with banks ranging from 30% to 75% of loss depending on the segment. We are prepared to offer following terms to farmers in the States and FCT Abuja: 75% guarantees on all input, working capital and limited living cost loans to plant the crop, and loan duration should be about 24 – 28 months,” he said.
How to start Ponmo business
It depends on the amount at your disposal but N100,000 can start kanda business in small scale while as low as N10,000 can start the ponmo business. Kanda are filled with 3 pieces or 2 pieces depending on the size in a bag.
The same size are put together and sold accordingly. Size 9 goes for N9,000 while size 5 goes for N5,000. I will advice you go for the bigger size because it moves market the more. Depending on your location, transportation is N1,000 for a piece. They are mostly carried by trucks.
Also, starting a business in Nigeria, whether small or medium sized, requires in depth planning and strategies.
To run a successful small-scale fish business, the business person needs to design a business plan, source for funding and officially register its business with the relevant authority.
The company should conduct market intelligence on how to run the business, and ensure that it has fulfilled all legal demands to operate smoothly.
