Olam Agri plans to invest about $400 million in African food processing via 2028, together with the development of new animal feed mills in Nigeria, Cameroon and Ivory Coast, because the agricultural commodities dealer expands its presence throughout the continent.
Olam Agri disclosed the funding in a press release on Wednesday, November 4, 2026, outlining its plans to develop food and feed processing capability in response to altering consumption patterns throughout Africa.
The funding may even help elevated grain processing, wheat milling and pasta manufacturing throughout chosen African markets, constructing on roughly $115 million the corporate has invested in West African processing operations since 2024.
What Olam Agri plans to invest in
The funding goals to capitalise on Africa’s rising inhabitants, rising incomes and altering dietary preferences, that are growing demand for processed meals, meat, fish and different sources of animal protein.
- “Populations are growing, incomes are rising and diets are changing,” Saurabh Mehra, Olam’s head of food and feed processing, mentioned in the assertion. “Demand for food, feed and protein will keep climbing.”
In Nigeria, Olam Agri plans to set up a 3rd animal feed plant to enhance the manufacturing of poultry and fish feed. The firm additionally intends to develop its semolina manufacturing capability and add 850 vehicles to its distribution fleet to strengthen the supply of its merchandise throughout the nation.
- In Cameroon, the corporate plans to set up a 300,000-tonne poultry feed plant, which is anticipated to turn out to be operational in early 2028.
- In Ghana, the funding will help an enlargement of the corporate’s pasta-making capability to enhance manufacturing.
- In Ivory Coast, Olam Agri plans to enter the nation’s food and feed processing markets for the primary time, with investments in wheat milling, animal feed manufacturing and poultry breeding.
The firm can be exploring alternatives to develop into southern African markets, together with Angola.
- “We believe in Africa’s long-term growth,” Mehra mentioned. The funding “will expand local processing capacity, support government priorities on value addition, and help strengthen food security.”
At full capability, the new feed mills deliberate for Nigeria, Cameroon and Ivory Coast are anticipated to generate annual purchases of greater than 500,000 tonnes of corn and soybeans from over 130,000 smallholder farmers.
Nigeria steps up efforts to enhance home food manufacturing
Olam Agri’s deliberate funding comes as Nigeria intensifies efforts to enhance home agricultural manufacturing, enhance food processing and cut back dependence on imported food commodities.
The improvement adopted the Federal Government’s launch of the 2025/2026 dry-season wheat farming initiative beneath NAGS-AP in November 2025, targeting 80,000 registered farmers nationwide and an anticipated output worth of roughly N160 billion.
More investments goal Nigeria’s agricultural worth chain
Beyond government-backed programmes, Nigeria’s agricultural sector has continued to entice investments from international firms, improvement finance establishments and native agribusinesses looking for to develop manufacturing, processing and distribution capability.
- In September 2026, EU-funded Agriculture Financing Initiative (AgriFI) invested $2.5 million in Tomato Jos to develop climate-smart tomato manufacturing and processing in northern Nigeria. The funding is anticipated to help manufacturing unit upgrades, packaging gear and expanded irrigation infrastructure.
- In March 2026, the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) signed an agreement to develop a $500 million integrated dairy mission combining large-scale farming, milk manufacturing and processing. The proposed facility is anticipated to embody a ten,000-cow dairy operation and processing capability for recent milk, milk powder, butter, cream and toddler method.
- Earlier, in December 2025, Belgian agro-industrial firm SIAT NV introduced a $100 million foreign direct investment in Presco Plc as the primary tranche of a $1 billion dedication in the direction of Nigeria’s agro-industrial improvement over the following decade.
These investments replicate rising curiosity in increasing Nigeria’s agricultural worth chain past main manufacturing into processing, manufacturing, storage and distribution, areas that stay important to enhancing home food provide and lowering reliance on imported food merchandise.
