DANGOTE TOMATO TO RESUME PRODUCTION IN DECEMBER

The Dangote Tomato Processing Factory in Kadawa village in Kura Local Government Area of Kano State, which closed shop seven months ago, would resume production in December, the Managing Director of the company, Alhaji Abdulkadir Kaita, said.

Kaita made the disclosure in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Kano on Tuesday.

He said the company, which commenced production in February 2016, had to stop activities due to the lack of fresh tomatoes.

He, however, added that the company had already started preparations for the recommencement of commercial activities.

He noted: “Our target is to resume production in December 2016 because by then we expect tomato farmers to have produced enough for the company to process.”

The managing director said that the company, which could process 120 tonnes of fresh tomatoes per day, would soon begin recruitment of additional staff.

He said: “We have plan to recruit additional staff who will be deployed to different sections of the company to ensure effective service delivery.”

It would be recalled that the company, which started processing tomatoes into cans and sachet in February 2016 had to close shop due to scarcity of the commodity as most farms in about five states were affected by a pest popularly known as “Tuta Absoluta”, which destroyed the tomato species in the affected states.

The pest destroyed some tomato farms in Kano, Jigawa, Plateau, Katsina and Kaduna states.