How To Start Yam Business in Nigeria (Yam Distribution)

Do you know that you can start making alot of money from yam business in Nigeria? In this article, you will learn How To Start Yam Business in Nigeria (Yam Distribution): Complete Guide.

Yam business is a very lucrative business that you can make millions of naira from in Nigeria. Agricultural businesses are very profitable which ever way you go into it, of course you should know that world over food business is a moving business. Yam is a household food and can last longer in store.

It can be processed into flour, chips etc. yam can be boiled, fried, roasted or pounded for consumption. In this post I will be showing you ways of sourcing yam, transportation and selling. These days you can easily locate genuine yam sellers online purchase and get them courier to you”

You can sell yam within Nigeria and make money or export and make more money. Yams are cheap in some locations example Taraba, Benue, Niger etc. this is because these states have yam in abundance. And costly in other locations example; Lagos, Port Harcourt, Delta etc.

See Also: How To Start Fried Yam Business In Nigeria (Make Over NGN100,000)

To start yam distribution business, you have do a market survey to know the type of yam consumed the most in your location and the price.

For instance, in Akwa Ibom State, Ogoja yam is the most consumed yam. Draw yam business plan so that you will be able to manage the business well, that is what seasoned entrepreneurs do.

To succeed in this business it is ideal for you to start yam business during yam season. Because yam is cheap at that time so with little amount of money you can buy plenty yam.

YAM BUSINESS CAN BE DONE IN TWO WAYS

Dealers: these are traders who buy yam in bulk from 10 kwarai upward that is from 1000 tubers and above. They buy in bulk from farmers and sell at a give away price in the same market.

To do this you have to go to the market very early just about the time farmers will be bringing their yam produce to the market, buy the yams and sell them off immediately or the same day.

RETAILERS: these set of people make so much money in this business. They buy few kwarai of yams from farmers and sell in batches of five or ten to consumers.

SOURCING FOR YAM

You can source for yam anywhere yam is produced in larger quantities. We cannot categorically say yam is cheaper here than there because everything depends on the bargaining power.

Note that it is compulsory for you to pay union fee for buying yams just like it is done in Oron crayfish market, if you don’t pay, they won’t sell for you. The amount for the fee can be negotiated.

See Also: How To Start A Food Stuff Business In Nigeria

1. Benue State

Zaki Ibiam, Benue State in Nigeria is the biggest yam market in Nigeria. People from all,over Nigeria go to this market to buy yam for commercial purpose. You can get yam in Zaki Ibiam market to buy in large quantities no market the quantity you want at anytime of the year.

There are vehicles that transports yam to any part of the country. Yams are sold in a batch of 100 known as Kwarai. Others are; Gboko and Ugba International Yam markets, in Ugba Local Government. They have species like Agatu, Gbango, paper yam. Gbango is said to be the sweetest yam but cost more than others.

2. Niger State

Yam markets in Niger are; Garatu is a big market in Minna meant mainly for selling of yams. People from other states Bayelsa, Lagos, Kaduna, Port Harcourt, Kano, Abuja go to Garatu to buy yams in bulk from farmers.

The market is just five minutes drive from FUT Minna. (Federal University of Technology, Minna). Other markets are; Serikin pawa, Pwada, Kuta and Beji markets. For every100 yam you buy #1,000 for shop, #300 for loading, #100 for wheelbarrow convergence. A truck of yam will contain about 1300 big yams.

3. Taraba State

Some people will say Taraba State is the best place to source for yam. Yes yam is cheap in Taraba but you have to buy in bulk and not few because you will spend more money to transport them down.

4. Nasarawa State

Nasarawa State is another best place to source for yam, they have Agyeragu market and yam store in Lafia.

Abuja

In Abuja, Bwari market is a good place to buy yam at a very cheap price. During the last season 50 big tubers of yam was sold for #10,000. If you sell each #500 you will get #25,000 assuming transport consumes 5k then 10k becomes yours for the offing.

Some business minded persons goes there to buy and sell in pieces to people that buy one, two, five etc. and make more money. Because those selling in batches don’t retail.

5. Oyo State

Saki, Oyo State is one of the Yoruba States where yam can be bought cheaper and is available in large quantities.

Unlike other places where 100 tubers are regarded as one hand or kwarai in Saki one hand is 120 tubers and they seller may still add some tubers about 4-6 for you after purchase.

The person who sold the yams for you will write your name on them using markers to signify they are yours. Another way is to buy directly from farmers in their home. When you consider transportation it will be better to source yam from where it is closer to you.

See Also: Top 10 Logistics Companies In Lagos For Your Business

TRANSPORTING OF YAM TO YOUR DESTINATION

Different locations have their different prices. There are standby vehicles in all of the mentioned yam markets that will transport yam to any part of the country. Meet the people who are in charge of the vehicles and book down, they will give you ticket and assign you to a vehicle plying your location.

In Saki a full roll of trailer is #15,000. Aside the money you will pay for wheelbarrow, loading and others.

You can come together as buyers and pay for truck to transport it to your destination or a close place where you can from transport to your location.

Trucks most times stops at designated location, it is easy to get trucks to Port Harcourt, Onitsha and Lagos but difficult to get to Akwa Ibom and many other states. That is why Port Harcourt yam market is very big because people from nearby states example Enugu yam traders go there to buy.

Lagos yam business also attracts bulk buyers because many yam distributors prefer mile 12 market because they will always sell no matter the quantity.

SELLING OF YAMS

You can decide to sell your yam anywhere but chose where you can sell fast. In Lagos, mile 12 market is the biggest market, in fact it is the biggest open market in Nigeria. You are not required to join yam association as in other markets so I heard. Because of this you can move around the market and sell as you like but will pay for tickets to offload the yams.

People are always on ground who are in charge to help you sell the yams. They will do the bargaining for you and you sell them off if the offer is good. Buyers will come to your stand whether you call them or not, there is no need to be afraid whether you will sell or not.

PROFITS IN YAM BUSINESS

Profit in yam business depends on the amount you invest in it and the situation of the market. Sometimes you can sell double the amount you bought or a little more. You can make gain of #40,000 from a #100,000 worth of yam you bought or less #20,000 or #15,000.

HOW MUCH IS NEEDED TO START YAM BUSINESS

You can start yam business with any amount, you can buy that of NGN20,000 for the smaller sizes. But for a good start I will prefer NGN100,000.

Before now, you can buy a kwarai of yam 9k, 15k and so on but the prices have changed. The price for smaller sizes ranges from NGN25,000, NGN30,000 and NGN35,000.
Medium size is from NGN45,00-NGN60,000
Bigger size is from NGN65,000-120,000. But you should have a higher bargaining power.

Note

Prices will not remain the same all through, it gets higher as we move away from its season.

YAM EXPORTATION BUSINESS

Our brothers and sisters outside the shores of Nigeria crave so much for home food that is why yam exportation business has become a hot cake. Any foodstuff that leaves the shores of Nigeria will bring good returns.

However, to start this business you must have a considerable amount of money because there are criteria to follow.

You have to possess proper certification to be able to attract big contracts from oversea. Your yams must meet international standards, you don’t want what happened to Federal Government last year to happened to you. The yams were rejected and millions of money went down the drain.

The yams should be packaged in cartons, 20kg for each of the cartons.

See Also: How To Export Palm Oil From Nigeria

YAM STORAGE BUSINESS

Yam like many other foodstuffs are seasonal, it will be in abundance between November to December depending on the States. Different state have different times they harvest yams.

The igbos celebrate their new yam festival in August that is why you hear of August meeting. In Benue it is November or there about and so on and so forth for other states.

Food storage business is very lucrative, you buy yam down during the season and sell them off during off season. A yam that is sold for #200 during its season will sale as high as #600 during off season. This is one of the reason why yam business is very lucrative.

Assuming you store #200,000 worth of yam, then in three months time or there about you will have up to #500,000 from it. What happens if the investment is up to a million that means you will make a million naira gain.

If you are thinking of how you will preserve the yam so they will not spoil you have to read my post on yam farming. Preserving is not difficult, that is why we still have them to eat all year round.

YAM FLOUR BUSINESS

Another way of doing yam business is to process yam into flour just like Poundo. Many people don’t want to stress themselves unnecessarily when there are alternatives or options. That is why yam flour will keep selling because it is an easy way of preparing pounded yam meal.

You can establish your yam flour company in an area where you have yam in excess it is an added advantage because you will minimize production cost. If you are interested in this line of business we can partner together.

CONCLUSION

Yam business is profitable but it is for determined persons because many things will discourage you along the line.

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