Mrs. Ethan Talatu, director southwest Region, Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON) presenting certificate of participation to Miss Monsurat Ololade (aka) Lade Shoes during the one day general Sensitization on Agro Allied Products, held in Osogbo, recently.
Photo: Shola Aderinto.
‘We have standards for garri, honey, dry and smoked fish etc. and looking at the focus of the current administration which is food security. The role of SON is to train, educate and create awareness among the agro-allied sector on quality production’
By Valentine Amanze
Nigeria’s quality products’ gatekeeper, the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), has empowered producers of agro-allied products in the country with the requisite skills and tools required to enable them compete with their counterparts.
It explained that the move was in line with the present administration’s plans to diversify the nation’s economy away from hydro carbon resources.
The Director-General/Chief Executive, SON, Mr. Faruok Salim, disclosed this at a workshop titled, “Standard Adherence: Catalyst for Trade,” held in Osogbo, Osun State.
He pointed out that Nigeria’s agro-allied products were sellable across the world, insisting that the agency would not compromise its standards in its effort to make sure locally made goods were competitive globally.
The SON boss further assured that the agency, in a bid to support the economy diversification agenda of the present administration, would continue to intensify efforts to sensitise producers of agro-allied products across the country on strict compliance with SON’s standards sellable across the world.
Represented by the Director Southwest, SON, Talatu Ethan, at a workshop, he disclosed that SON was at the fore of driving diversification into agricultural products as a means of generating revenue.
His words: “Nigeria’s products are having global acceptance. The Federal Government and regulatory bodies are working with stakeholders to ensure that whatever they produce could meet up with the specifications of the foreign countries.
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“The objective of this workshop is to create awareness on the importance of standards to ensure that the manufacturers, producers and processors meet up with the minimum requirements of the standards, we have standards for garri, honey, dry and smoked fish etc. and looking at the focus of the current administration which is food security. The role of SON is to train, educate and create awareness among the agro-allied sector on quality production.”
He pointed out that the objective of the workshop was to create awareness on the importance of standards to ensure that the manufacturers, producers and processors meet up with the minimum requirements of the standards.
“We have standards for garri, honey, dry and smoked fish e.t.c and looking at the focus of the current administration which is food security, the role of SON is to train, educate and create awareness among the agro-allied sector on quality production.
“Mandatory conformity assessment, will prepare our local producer to produce products that meet up with the minimum requirement of the standards so that the products would compete with foreign products, our duty is to encourage and support them for production of quality and safe products.”
Also, the Chairman, All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Osun State chapter, Sulaiman Araokanmi, described the workshop as timely in a bid to empower agro-allied producers across the country.
He said that the programme has further widened their understanding on the entailment of agro- allied production and exposed every producer to reason why their jobs should not be handled with levity.
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