The Organisation for Technology Advancement of Cold Chain in West Africa (OTACCWA) has disclosed that Nigeria recorded between N3.5 trillion and N5 trillion in post-harvest losses in 2025.
The President of OTACCWA, Mr Alexander Isong, made this known in Lagos, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.
He attributed the losses to inefficiencies across major agricultural value chains and inadequate cold chain infrastructure, warning that the economic impact extends beyond agriculture and affects overall national productivity.
According to Isong, Nigeria lost an estimated 30 to 40 million metric tonnes of food across key value chains in 2025.
He noted that the losses were concentrated in tomatoes, vegetables, fruits, dairy, meat, fish and root crops due to weak cold chain systems.
“In monetary terms, this translates to approximately N3.5 trillion to N5 trillion in economic losses When such volumes are lost due to inadequate cold storage, poor logistics, and weak infrastructure, the country is effectively losing Gross Domestic Product that has already been created.
“Post-harvest loss is not just an agricultural problem; it is an infrastructure and economic challenge,” he added.
