Do you know that the export business is worth over $102,878,499,707 and that is just the statistics for 2014 alone contributing over 10.66% of the total GDP of Nigeria?
If you are interested in some more export statistics you can check out these interesting facts here.
Now that we know how much export can contribute and how lucrative it is if you are interested in going that route, here are some interesting export items majorly agricultural products and items you can start exporting from Nigeria.
I have therefore combined this exclusive list of the top agricultural product you should be exporting if you are in the export business in Nigeria.
Order this guide to know more on What You Can Export From Nigeria
This product is not on the Nigeria export prohibition list, therefore you can make some money from it if you understand how it works.
List of Agricultural Product You Can Begin to Export
- Dried kola nuts:
Believe it or not, kola nuts are in high demand outside of the country. It serves as raw materials for making beverages, soft drinks, drugs, soaps, body creams among others.
Also, it is very nutritional. It aids digestion, boosts metabolism, aids blood circulation (useful for people with blood pressure) and increases the general body’s immune system. Considering it is widely grown in some parts of Nigeria, it is a good idea to look into it as one of the products one can export.
If you want to start the business, the first thing of course is to get sellers and you would most likely get high quantities in states in South Western Nigeria. In order to get at cheaper prices and more quantities, it is more expedient to go to the rural areas to buy straight from the farmers than buying from wholesalers. After the buying, there is something to be said for making sure to clean up and remove all impurities than might have come up during harvesting and packaging attractively before exporting.
Getting buyers is not as difficult either, most things are on the internet at the tip of our fingers these days. Apart from going extra miles by attending trade shows, you can get buyers by searching for them online.
- Groundnut:
Groundnut, which is a species in the legume or bean family, is another very lucrative product to export outside of our shores. In Nigeria, apart from majorly using it for oil, we also eat it either roasted or boiled. However, outside the countries, in the Americas and across Europe, they serve as raw materials for different companies.
Groundnut and its derivatives, especially the oil, can be used to manufacture lubricating oil, varnish, leather dressings, paint, furniture polish, fertilizers, insecticides, nitroglycerin, soap, many other cosmetics and many consumable products like nut paste.
The nuts are used in the manufacture of abrasives, fuel, plastic, mucilage (glue), wall-board and cellulose (used in rayon and paper). The initial way of finding buyers is also at our finger tips through searching the internet. The best way to get suppliers is to visit the farmers and buy from them.
Groundnut is found in their high quantity in many Northern states like Kano, Kaduna, Jigawa, Zamfara, Kebbi, Sokoto, Katsina, Adamawa, Niger, Yobe, Borno, Taraba, Bauchi, Gombe, Plateau and Nasarawa. It is important to note that Groundnuts usually contain Aflatoxins, naturally occurring mycotoxins that are toxic, so if the products contain high level of them, they would be rejected. It calls on the exporter to check the level of Aflatoxins before exporting.
- Cabbage:
Cabbage is a leafy vegetable grown as an annual vegetable crop for its dense-leaved heads and often mistaken for lettuce because of the similarity in appearance.
It is included as one of the healthiest foods in the world because it contains phytochemicals like zeaxanthin, thiocyanates, isothiocyanates, lutein and sulforaphane which helps the body to fight against the possibilities of breast, colon and prostate cancer.
It also contains other vitamins that generally increase the body’s immune system. The vegetable for different kinds of food like stir-fried spicy cabbage, braised red cabbage, cabbage slaw, cabbage soup, cabbage rolls, cabbage kimchi, baja fish tacos, stir-fried noodles with cabbage among others.
Therefore, it is no wonder that it is in high demand. All you need to do to get buyer is to take advantage of the different search engines the internet has provided like Google and search for buyers of cabbage. You can also use the internet to get suppliers so as to weigh your options for the best supplier to go for. And if you have access to the farmers, it is more beneficial to buy directly from them. They are grown mostly in Sokoto, Taraba and Plateau states.
- Avocado Pea:
Avocado Pear is like a panacea not only for medicine but for food as well. It is defined by the Encarta Dictionary as a fruit with a leathery dark green or blackish skin, a large stony seed, and soft smooth-tasting pale green flesh, eaten raw in salads or dips.
Apart from the fruit itself being edible and can be eaten raw, the paste can also be used as a substitute for margarine as well as used to prepare stew, especially when it is combined with peas. Additionally, its oil is also useful for cooking and manufacturing soaps, body creams, shampoo, hair conditioners and other kinds of customers because of its benefits for the skin and hair.
The oil has been proven to improve skin and hair quality, especially for people who have dry skin and scalp, causing itching. Other benefits include protection against colon, stomach, breast, pancreatic and cervical cancers; serve as natural detoxifier and protection against certain chronic diseases like coronary heart disease, stroke, hypertension, diabetes, obesity, and some gastrointestinal diseases.
The fruit is found mostly in the Southern part of the country, so you can know where to find suppliers or farmers. There are many parts of Europe, especially, where the fruit cannot be found, so it is a business you can look into.
- Balsam Pea:
Balsam pea is the pea of the Balsam plant. Balsam plant is a plant of the family that includes impatiens and garden balsam. In Europe and America, it is hardly found in its purest form and so, getting sellers would come in handy.
Fortunately, it can be accessed in Nigeria and you can take advantage of the business opportunity found in it. Farmers would be the go-to-person for getting the product, so you can have first-hand look at how it is produced and ascertain if it is in its purest form or not and also to get it for a cheaper price and have access to a large quantity.
It is very medicinal and beneficial to the human body. It helps to improve digestion, fights cancer, aids weight loss, treats acne and other skin issues, fights diabetes by reducing sugar content in the blood stream, improves hair quality among many other benefits. These benefits make them sought after by countries where it is not found and it is wise business decision to take advantage of the opportunity.
- Pigeon peas:
Pigeon pea is of the Pigeon pea plant, a legume that belongs to the family of “Fabaceae” or “Leguminosae.” The pigeon peas have several nutritional values and therefore, they are considered a huge crop all over the world.
They are used for livestock feed, and also serve culinary and manufacturing purposes. It can be used to produce green manure because they have been discovered to improve the quality of the soil and also prevent pests as a result of the Nitrogen they contain, and the leaves and forage serve as fodder for cattle. Additionally, the peas can be cooked or blended to flour and mixed with other grains like millet, sorghum or maize to make bread.
The nutritional benefits of pigeon peas as mentioned earlier are also enormous. For instance, it serves as treatment for diseases such as blood disorders, anaemia, diarrhoea, dysentery, jaundice, fevers, colic, leprosy, convulsions, bronchitis, pneumonia, coughs, respiratory infections, colds, chest problems, sore throat, flu diabetes, hepatitis, yellow fever, strokes and urinary infections. Therefore, it is a product that anybody that wants to go into exporting can go into because it is in high demand. Recently, for instance, Nigeria secured an offer from the nation of India to export 100bn dollars’ worth of pigeon peas into India.
- Chikweed:
Chikweed is an herb that is very nutritional. It is used for different purposes in different areas. It is believed that it is called “Chikweed” because it serves as food for chickens.
But chickens are not the only ones that can benefit from this herb because it does not only serve as culinary supplement; it also serves as medicinal supplements used to treat a variety of diseases. For instance, it is used as food supplement in Japan and medicinal supplement in the United States. Many countries abroad know the benefit of this plant and do not have the luxury of its availability, so it is a wise business idea to trade in the product. And luckily, this herb can be found in some parts of Nigeria.
The best supply would come from those who directly do the planting. That would save cost and also quality and quantity. The chikweed is beneficial in that it cures bronchitis, pleurisy, cold, cough, rheumatism, hoarseness, inflammation, weakness of the bowels and stomach, lungs, bronchial tubes and can even be used for weight loss or to cure obesity. It also serves as a very good treatment for different external issues like boils, scalds, burns, tumours, piles, swollen testes, and ulcerated throat and mouth
- Corn Silk:
The dictionary defines corn silk as the tuft of silky fibres growing at the tip of an ear of corn, used for diuretic in herbal medicine. The corn itself is very nutritional, so it is no wonder the fibre that grows from it is also beneficial to the human body. Corn is a somewhat a staple food in Nigeria, especially during the raining season in Nigeria.
Since it is produced in large quantity in Nigeria, the silk that grows from it can serve as a good and lucrative source of income when exported to other countries. Usually, the silk is used basically for health purposes. It is said that corn silk contains proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, fibre and chemicals which might work like water pills (diuretics). It is popular for its usefulness in issues that are related to the bladder. For instance, it works as a remedy for issues like inflammation of the urinary system, inflammation of the prostate, kidney stones, and even bedwetting.
Also, scientists discovered that is also effective for chronic diseases such as diabetes, congestive heart failure, high blood pressure, kidney failure, liver and prostate cancer. Considering that it is very available in Nigeria, you can take advantage of the availability to countries where it is needed and the internet can be used to find international buyers.
- Guava Leaves:
Just as guava fruit is beneficial as it is regarded as one of the super fruits, so also is guava leaves beneficial to the human body and also a lucrative product to export.
Guava leaves is beneficial in diarrhoea, aid in weight loss, lowers cholesterol, treatment of bronchitis, fights cancer, treatment of toothaches, sore throats and gum disease, reduces acne, beneficial in dengue fever, heals cough and cold, improves skin texture, prevents hair loss, cures toothache and many others. It is used by the soaking the leaves and drink the water or add it to the tea. Guava tree is found in almost all the parts of Nigeria, so it is to the advantage of anybody who wants to trade in guava leaves.
Getting suppliers is relatively easy because of the availability of the tree around. In fact, many Nigeria have the tree in their homes. To get a large quantity, one might have to contact farmers who deal with guava. Buyers who are interested in the leaves can simply also be gotten by gotten online to search through search engines.
- Misttletoe Leaves:
Mistletoe is not only useful to get kissed under; it has other benefits that make it sought after in different parts of the world. Mistletoe is an obligate hemiparasitic plant that attaches itself to a wide variety of host trees such as pine, guava, kolanut, cocoa, oak, birch, and apple.
It penetrates the branches of a tree by a structure called the haustorium, through which they absorb water and nutrients from the host plant. For centuries, Mistletoe preparations have been used medicinally around Europe to treat epilepsy, infertility, hypertension, and arthritis. Mistletoe leaves have been found to destroy cancerous cells and therefore good for curing cancer and external treatment for leucorrhoea, gout and sciatica. But more than that, it is good for prevention of several kinds of diseases such as diabetes, malaria, typhoid, migraine, hypertension, pneumonia, convulsive cough, bronchial asthma and improves general immune system. It can also be used as food for some animals.
The common way it is consumed is by preparing mistletoe tea either by soaking the leaves (after washing the leaves) and drinking the water or soaking the leaves in your normal tea. In case you are wondering where to get the buyers for the product, you can search for them through search engines and you are go to go.
- Stinging Nettle:
- Vaocanga Africana Seed
- Irish potatoes
- Plun Sees
- Pearl Millet
- Cashew Kernens
- Floral greens
- Lichen Moss
- Mosses and Linchens
- Mushrooms and truffles
- Foliage branches
- Pecans
- Handicrafts products
- Garments
- Alovera
- Lemon grass
- SpicesCranberries and genus-
- Cranberries and genus-
- Vaccinium ex blueberries
- Wild blueberries
- Vanilla beans
- Gnseng roots, cultivated
- Ginseng roots, wild
- Maple sugar and syrup
- Pignolia (Pine nuts)
- wood or Sulfate tumpentine oils
- Essential oils of Cedarwood, Clove and nutmeg
- Pine Oil
- Wheatgrass
- Sunflower seeds
- Pumpkin seeds
- Black walnut
- Brazil nut
- Shea Nut
- Shea nut cake
- Tiger Nut
- Pulse Chick Peas
- Almond Shells
- Italian Beans
- Dried Cassava Leave
- Dried Beans Leave
- Dried Orange Peel
- Coconut
- Coconut Oil
- Coconut Chemical
- Wallnuts
- Wide Indigo
- Neem
- Papain
- Roses
- Turmeric Root (Curcuma Domestica)
- Coffee Arabica
- Coffee Robusta
- Copra
- Spices
- Macadamia
- Bamboo
- Barite
- Palm Juice
- Palm Fibre
- Sugar
- Moringa Leaves/Powder
- Sheba (Stone Flower)
- Grasscutters
- Grasscutter skins
- Grasscutter Heads
- Grasscutter Faeces
- Grasscutter Hairs
- Hide & Skin
- Dried Kola nut
- Dried Lemon Slices
- Brown Beans
- Soya Beans
- Soya Beans Cake
- Gerald horn
- Bone meal
- Micaflakes
- Soya Pea
- Beans and Pulses
- Afzelia Wood
- Kosso wood
- Gmelina logs
- Charcoal
It might surprise you to know that charcoal has quite a number of more important uses besides cooking and many outside of our shores will appreciate a chance to have it in abundance.
More commonly, charcoal is appreciated in countries where they experience months of winter to heat their house. Due to the coldness of those places, they need charcoal in abundance to keep their homes perpetually warm so they do not freeze to death. If they can get an opportunity to get it in abundance, they would be most assuredly glad.
Also, charcoal is used as metallurgical fuel to melt or smelt metals such as irons, so it is a very important source of fuel to the blacksmith.
It is also important as a source of fuel for some industries, it is used to produce black powder used in making fireworks, it also serves as an effective filter because charcoal has the ability to absorb certain organic compounds from suspended in gases or liquid. Read more about how to start a charcoal export business in Nigeria
- Somali Charcoal
- Shisha charcoal
- Acacia Charcoal
- Nails
- Desiccated Coconut
- Fruit cordial
- Peanuts
- Rice
- Beans
- Milk powder
- Vegetable Oil
- Used Cloths
- Used Tyres
- Wheat Flour
- White corn meal
- Corn Cooking oil
- Cumin seed oil
- Sage Oil
- Soya bean oil
- Palm oil
- Cayane pepper
- Cement
- Pharmactical Drugs
- Cocoa powder.
- Ogi
- Pap
- Babeque lump
- Briquette
- Hard wood charcoal
- Charcoal Dust
- Lemon Tree Charcoal
- Ginger Tree Charcoal
- Apple Tree Charcoal
- Fruit Trees Charcoal
- Scrap Tyres
- Dried spit ginger:
Ginger (Zingiber Officinale) is a commodity that is highly valued in international markets for its aroma, pungency and high oil and Aleo resin content. Nigeria is the third largest exporter of ginger in the world after China and India.
Most of the dried ginger that is available for international trade are simply sun-dried over a few days, but artificial drying is also used in areas lacking a defined dry season to coincide with the harvest. The rhizome is dried to between 10 and 12 percent moisture content.
Start here with this guide to ginger product profile and much more
- Gallstone
- Red coral
- Milky Quartz
- Amber
- Tourmaline
- Amethyst
- Charnockite
- Feldspa
- Barytes
- Bentonite
- Aquamarine
- Black Aquamarine
- Beautiful malachite collections ( without polish)
- Cow Kidney Stones
- Cow Crushed Bone
- Dried Green Lemon Grass
- Propolis
- Bee Honey
- Beeswax
- Crude Beeswax
- Bee Propolis
- Bee Pollen
- Bee Venom
- Bee Royal Jelly
- Cassava Products
- Frozen Cassava
- Cassava – tapioca chips – You can learn how to export cassava
- Bitter Kola
- Dried hibiscus
- Zobo leaves
- Dried Paw Paw Cubes
- Oranges
- Orange Peel Sweet Red
- Sesame Seed Oil
- Refined Bleached Deodorized Oil (RDBO)
- Plantain Leaves
- Dried Black Goat Hair
- Dried Mango Cubes
- Natural Rubber
- Garlic
- Orange Peel Bitter Green
- Frozen Shrimps
- Afromomon
- Henna Weeds
- Lemon Peels
- Mush Room
- Ginger
- Ginger Oil
- Dried Split Ginger
- Base Oil
- Snails
In case you are wondering what is so special about a snail that it would be a lucrative product of trade, wonder no more.
Snail, just like other seafood, is very nutritional but it also has cosmetic value because the slime from the snail is good for skin rejuvenation.
African traditional restaurants in Diaspora demand for snail in high quantity because of the demand from Africans living abroad.
Apart from that, the snail is used in Asian countries to make herbs.
- Smoked barracuda
- Smoked Catfish
- Snail Shells
- Snail foam
- Operculum of top shell snail
- Periwinkle Snail Shell
- Fresh Water Snail Shell
- Snail Eggs
- Processed & Dried Grasscutters
- Ogbono Seed
- Pumpkin – Leaf
- Pumpkin – Fruit
- Pumpkin – Flower
- Pumpkin – Seed
- Bitter leaves
- Grounded Snail Shell
- Wood Chips
- Crude Palm Oil
- Palm Kernel Cake ( PKC )
- Palm Kernel Oil ( PKO )
- Palm Kernel Shell (PKS )
- White caviar
- Froth
- Snails` slime
- Galena
- Gold
- Gold dust
- Feldspar
- Iron-ore
- Lead-ore
- Tin-ore
- Columbite ore
- Zinc ore
- Kaolin
- Mica
- Loriade
- Aqua Marine ( Kalagu)
- Manganese
- Limestone
- Cassaiterite
- Gelena
- Ilemmite
- Moleybdenite
- Asbestos
- Coal
- Lignite
- Ruby
- Sapphire
- Metal Scraps
- Limestone Coal
- Gypsum
- Dolomyte
- Ferro Silicon
- Rough Diamond
- Emerald
- Granite
- Marble
- Rough diamonds
- Zircon sand
- Ilminite sand
- Bauxite
- Cocoa – Start exporting cocoa
- Coffee
- Cashew nuts
Cashew (Anacardium Occidentale L.) is a tree crop of considerable economic importance to Nigeria and other tropical countries. Apart from being a source of useful products and byproducts for food, medicinal and industrial applications, cashew gives also a useful shade, while ornamental and alley trees are suitable for the control of soil erosion, particularly for the protection of watersheds and dams. Learn more on how to start cashew export here
- Tapioca pearls
- Rubber
- Kola nuts
- Palm kernel
- Coconut Water
- Coconut Shell Charcoal
- Cotton
- Cow horns and hooves
- Dry Ginger
- Chilli Pepper
- Cayenne Pepper
- Timber
- Shea Butter
- Cassava ‘pellets’
- Sorghum (Red or White)
- Millet
- Vegetable oils (type of vegetable oils) jatropha
- Pyrite mineral (Ferro sulphur)
- Industrial Sulfur
- Monitor Lizard
- Gemstone
- Tea
- Moringa
- Vernonia
- Ugu Leaves
- Telfairia occidentalis
- Uha
- Banana
- Marbles
- Paraffin wax
- Gum rosin
- Titanium dioxide
- Lithopone
- Sheep and Goat skins
- Tobacco products
- Gum arabics
- Edible fruits
- Prawns
- Shrimps
- Fish and crustaceans
- Cotton yarns
- Woven fabrics
- Topaz
- Marine Products (prawn farming)
- Horticulture
- Floriculture
- Medicinal Plants (Prunus Africana or Pygeum)
- Soyabeans Oil
- Corn Oil
- Kanola Oil
- Cocoa Powder
- Woven Clothes
- Rough Silver Plate
- Tantalite
- Beryllium
- Carats of Garnet
- kaolin clay
- Benniseed
- Sesame Seeds
Sesame seeds (or sesamum or benniseed) are the seeds of the tropical annual Sesamum Indicum. The species has a long history of cultivation, mostly for its yield of oil. The original area of domestication of sesame is obscure but it seems likely to have first been brought into cultivation in Asia or India. The plant is usually 60 to 120cm tall and the fruit is a dehiscent capsule held close to the stem. When ripe, the capsule shatters to release a number of small seeds. The seeds are protected by a fibrous ‘hull’ or skin, which may be whitish to brown or black depending on the variety. 1000 seeds weigh some 4-8g. The seeds have a high oil content of 44-60%. Lexport sesame seed here
- Black Sesame Seed
- Hulled Sesame Seed
- Cotton Yan
- Diamond
- Potash
- Sheanut
- Sorghum
- Tin Meta Ingot
- Tobacco Leaves
- Zinc Alloy Ingot
- Aqua berly
- Red tourmaline
- Alkylate
- Alcoholic Beverages
- Aluminum products
- Adhesives
- Ball pens
- Bolt and Nuts
- Baby food and feeding bottles
- Chemicals
- Cosmetics and perfumes
- Furniture
- Foam products
- Garments and suits
- Handicrafts
- Insecticides
- Palm kernel/edible oil
- Rubber sheets
- Lubricants
- Liquor
- Powder
- Leather products
- Polyester yarn and chip
- Textiles – Learn how to start exporting textiles
- Printing ink
- Glycerin
- Columbite
- Tourmaline double color
Once you are ready to begin exporting your products, we highly recommend that you visit our export guide to learn how to start exporting in Nigeria for your export needs. Another website you should also visit is Nigeria Export Commission website
Now over to which. Which of these products are you considering exporting and what is your major challenges with exporting from Nigeria