Arla commits to investing in local dairy production in Nigeria

Arla has officially committed to investing in local dairy production in Nigeria.

The dairy company has also committed to sharing knowledge about agricultural practices and other aspects of dairy production that will improve the local raw milk production and quality in the country. The purpose is to contribute to a sustainable dairy sector development and growth in Nigeria.

The commitment was formally given as director of Arla’s regional office in Sub Saharan Africa Steen Hadsbjerg signed a Letter of Intent during a Danish business delegation to Nigeria. The letter was presented to the Nigerian Minister of Agriculture, who invited for further dialogue with Arla.

Commenting on the announcement, Steen Hadsbjerg said: “In order for Arla to have a long-term successful business in Nigeria, it’s important that we engage in the development of the local dairy sector. The Nigerian government looks very positively on the companies that commit to taking a local responsibility and help create a better balance between imported and locally produced dairy products in the market.”

Hadsbjerg is currently in detailed dialogue with a local Nigerian dairy company and expects to disclose further details shortly.

Arla expects to triple its revenue from consumer sales in Sub-Saharan Africa by 2020

The Letter of Intent is a natural next step in Arla’s engagement in The Milky Way to Development, an alliance lead by CARE to develop a socially, environmentally and economically sustainable market for milk in West Africa.

In 2015, Arla made a comprehensive investigation in Nigeria to assess how its increasing business activities in Nigeria impact the local dairy sector and if there are any negative effects on human rights of the local dairy farmers. Arla concluded in its report that the dairy sector in Nigeria is suffering from a number of barriers and that Arla’s presence in the market will be linked to a continuous underdevelopment of the Nigerian dairy sector if looked at in a broader perspective. In order to mitigate potential negative impact in the long run, Arla has decided to engage in the development of the local dairy value chain.

In Arla’s new Strategy 2020 the company expects to triple its revenue from consumer sales in Sub-Saharan Africa by 2020 (most of which is expected to come in Nigeria and West Africa). Arla’s revenue in the region in 2015 was 75 million EURO.