Dissatisfied with the high rate of wheat import into Nigeria, the federal government has entered into partnership with Crown Flour Mill (OLAM grains) to drastically minimise it.
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Sabo Nanono disclosed it when the management of the company led by its Corporate Affairs Manager, Damilola Adeniyi, paid him a courtesy call at the weekend in Abuja.
Nanono stated that the initiative would reduce wheat importation, enhance food security and nutrition, conserve scarce foreign exchange and create jobs.
According to him, the ministry has put in place deliberate measures to ensure the increase in wheat production capacity including, the provision of quality seeds and in the distribution of agricultural inputs to Nigerian farmers, adding that the ministry will support the group in its development efforts.
He stated that with the intervention of Crown Flour Mills such as those of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Flour Milling Association of Nigeria (FMAN), Transformation for Africa Agricultural Technologies (TAAT) and the Wheat Compact Project, Nigeria will experience a sustainable sufficiency in the local production of wheat.