Cross River To Export Noodles To Cameroun, Equatorial Guinea

Cross River State Governor, Senator Ben Ayade has said that the state is working to establish noodles manufacturing plant where the products can be exported to nearby countries like the Equatorial Guinea and Cameroun.

Ayade, speaking through the state Commissioner of Commerce Trade and Industry, Mr. Peter Egba at the site of the factory said that the state was also setting up the plant to produce enough noodles for the federal government homegrown school feeding programme.

The Governor said that he  has mobilized contractors not only for the  proposed noodles plant but also for feed mills and tooth pick plants. The noodles plant will be located at the Ayade industrial park along Goodluck Jonathan's bypass.

"The idea of noodles production came as a result of the federal government's school feeding program. It is one of the items people, especially children consume. So the idea is to capture that segment of the market and then extend it to our neighbors like Cameroon and Equitorial Guinea. Our market research shows noodles sell well in these countries and also because of our proximity to them, it is believed that it will be good  if such a factory is established here as they will definitely come to to patronise  us", he said.

On the state of readiness for the take off the plant, he hinted that: "Right now as we speak, the machines are ready and in two weeks, we would be starting the constructions work. The reason we needed to ensure the machines were ready was because they had to be fabricated outside the country and that is why we started with that process first. The next phase is the civil engineering which is the actual construction phase proper. The machines are already paid for and fabrication work completed."

He maintained that "We have completed one hundred percent of the equipments procurement needed to run the noodles factory here in this industrial park. The payment has been made and we believe that by the time they are shipped into the country, we should have gone far with the construction."

Speaking on the capacity for the noodles plant, he disclosed that, "We are looking at 50,000 metric tons per annum because we have received a lot of interests from patrons. 50,000 metric ton per annum is the capacity we intend to channel into the market."

Other equipment the state government has also made payment for,  according to the Governor is the vibrated electric pole manufacturing plant, which he said will be established in Akamkpa. 

"We want to take advantage of the quarry dust in Akampa to customise electric poles because most of the electric poles we use in Cross River State are gotten from Kogi  and Benue States,  so that is why the state government is using their initiative since we have the quarry dust in abundance we should be able to leverage on them.

"We have also paid for and expecting the delivery of poultry and feed mill machine which is going to be located at Obubura.  We are expecting them to arrive by the first week of the month of May.

"We also have on ground the machines for the toothpick production in Ekori in Yakuur Local Government Area. Our Chinese partners are coming next week to install them. We have done up to 80 percent in building the factory in Ekori. Right now the main factory hall is 80 percent ready.

"Engineers are coming all the way from China to install them. By next week we should be moving them. The major raw material we intend to use for tooth pick is the bamboo and because Ekori is very close to Abi and Abi and Ekori have a lot of bamboos we decided to establish it there", he said.