Railway Operations to Force Down Price of Rice, Says TITAN Farms CEO

Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan

The Chief Executive Officer of TITAN Farms Limited, Aare Gbenga Eyiolawi, has lauded President Muhammadu Buhari for inaugurating the Lagos-Ibadan railway transport service, saying it will reduce the cost of logistics in processing rice and force down the price of the commodity in the country.

He gave the assurance yesterday in Ibadan, Oyo State, while delivering a keynote address titled: ‘Food Security: The Challenges of Rice Farming and Milling in Nigeria’, at a media interactive tagged: ‘Time Out with Broadcasters’, organised by the Freelance and Independent Broadcasters Association of Nigeria (FIBAN), Oyo State chapter, led by Pastor Seun Awodele.

The event chaired by the state Deputy Governor, Mr. Raufu Olaniyan, was witnessed by other stakeholders in the industry, which include the President of Market Men and Women Association of Oyo State, Alhaji Sunmaila Jimoh, who doubles as the president of Rice Sellers Association of Oyo State; Alhaja Saratu Konibaje, the Iyaloja of Oyo State, the Iyaloja-Genaral of Ibadanland, Alhaja Sariat Ojikutu Olorunero, and the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of Bodija Market, Sulaiman Ileomo.

The TITAN Farms boss said with the railway terminus located in Moniya, Ibadan, just five minutes’ drive away from the factory in Ibadan, there would be lots of drop in expenses on logistics, security and insurance, stating that the price of rice will definitely drop very soon.

While explaining how insecurity is affecting farming business, he said the insecurity challenges in the country at present cut across all sectors, and not limited to farming alone, noting that the more reason most investors resort to protecting their businesses through insurance covers.

According to him, “We spends so much on transporting our materials from the northern part of the country to the state by the way of securing wares through insurance due to the insecurity in the country, and that is why we are commending the federal government in the area of transportation with the restoration of the rail system. There will be drop in the price of the commodity because we would not be paying more; what we need to do is to get our raw materials down here through the train.”