NAQS set to sort out Nigeria’s ban by EU

The Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS), has commenced talks with the European Union on how to sort out issues surrounding the five years ban on Nigeria’s export of agricultural produce to Europe.
Speaking yesterday during a workshop organised in partnership with COLECAP,in Abuja, the Coordinating Director, Dr.
Vincent Isegbe, disclosed that the EU banned Nigeria in 2015 from exporting beans and other produce to Europe due to high level of chemical contamination.
Isegbe who emphasised that balanced diet cannot be achieved without fruits and vegetables said through advocacy and active participation of Croplife, an international agriculture chemical company, chemical level on agric produce was declining.
His words: “The EU ban seize officially in June 2019 we are discussing and we have gone to do periodic sampling on the level of chemicals in our beans.
“With that, we will know if the farmers are complying with our regulations and advice.
So far so good, the chemical level is reducing.
Though it at a slow pace but it’s reducing.” According to him, the country has a demand of 40, 000 metric tons vegetable but unable to achieve.
He said the country currently don’t export fruits yet it imports alot of apples for local consumption.
“We can grow all these commodities all year round either winter or summer.
We have a great opportunity to send these commodities to European nations, America during the time of winter or when the winter is just finishing, so the market is always there.” However, he described the workshop as an opportunity for stakeholders to discuss and provide sustainable solutions for fruits and vegetable export to other nations.
The event was themed the “Role of Public and Private Sectors in Sanitary and Photosanitary Systems for the Fruits and Vegetable subSector.”

 

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