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EU Invests $2.5m On Nigeria’s Tomato Processing Plant

BY CHIKA OKEKE, Abuja

The European Union-funded Agriculture Financing Initiative (AgriFI) has invested $2.5 million to expand production, processing and engagement with smallholder farmers in Nigeria’s tomato processing company in the North.

Already, EDFI Management Company (EDFI MC) signed the agreement through the AgriFI ACP Regional Window as a structured convertible note on behalf of Tomato Jos Inc., a vertically integrated tomato farming and processing company.

The financing will support the acquisition of packaging equipment, factory upgrades and expansion of drip irrigation, while helping Tomato Jos introduce new product formats and reach additional markets, including business-to-business and hospitality customers.

Interestingly, more than half of the company’s raw materials are currently sourced from smallholder farmers in Kaduna State, even as the investment is expected to lower energy and production costs while strengthening the economics of local tomato processing and reducing post-harvest losses.

EU Ambassador to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Gautier Mignot noted that the investment would help create local value across the tomato supply chain while expanding opportunities for smallholder farmers, particularly women.

Mignot added: “Through the EU-funded AgriFI ACP Regional Window, this investment in Tomato Jos supports a Nigerian business that is creating local value from farm to shelf, reducing post-harvest losses and expanding market opportunities for smallholder farmers.”

Tomato Jos plans to increase annual fresh-tomato production from just over 4,500 tonnes currently to about 16,000 tonnes by 2029.

This was even as the company will expand its smallholder farmer network from approximately 500 farmers to 1,500 over the same period, while targeting an increase of more than 150 per cent in income per farmer between 2024 and 2029.

Tomato Jos CEO, Mira Mehta informed that the funding would support expansion, reduce energy costs and the company’s carbon footprint, while creating more reliable economic opportunities for farming communities.

The company expects the investment to assist in catalysing a further $6 million equity round in 2028, representing an anticipated leverage factor of 3.2 times.

Also, the investment could help deepen Nigeria’s tomato processing capacity and reduce reliance on imported tomato products by increasing the availability of locally processed tomato paste.

 

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