THE INTERNATIONAL SESAME SEED INDUSTRY; A NIGERIA OVERVIEW OF EXPORT.

         Introduction Sesame seeds (or sesamum or benniseed)

are the seeds of the tropical annual Sesamum indicum The species has a long history of cultivation, mostly for its yield of oil. The original area of

domestication of sesame seed is obscure but it seems likely to have first been brought into cultivation in Asia or India. The plant is usually 60 to 120cm tall and the fruit is a dehiscent

capsule held close to the stem. When ripe,

 the capsule shatters to release a number of small seeds. The seeds are protected by a fibrous ‘hull’ or skin, which may be whitish to brown or black depending on the variety. 1000 seeds weigh about 4-8g. The seeds have a high oil content of 44-60%.

The plant is deep rooting and well adapted to withstand dry conditions. It will grow on relatively poor soils in climates generally unsuitable for other crops, and so it is widely valued for its nutritional and financial yield from otherwise inclement areas. It is well suited to smallholder farming with a relatively short harvest cycle of 90 –140 days allowing other crops to be grown in

the field. It is often inter-cropped with other grains. Sesame seed is now cultivated around the dry tropics between the latitudes of 40°N and S. It is scarcely cultivated in the USA or Europe, not only because of climate but also because of the low returns per unit area. Non-shattering varieties have been bred in order to mechanize the crop, but the great majority of the world’s output is still harvested by hand.

Sesame seed is the most sought after vegetable oil in the world as its industrial ingredients can be used for the production of margarine, canned sardine, corned beef, soap and ink. It is well preferred to other vegetable oils because of its lack of odour, chemical composition, color and taste. Sesame, also locally known as 'Benni seed', is highly appreciated today in the country and large quantities of it is now being produced not just for consumption but for export purposes. The increasing use of sesame seeds on industrial scale has resulted in its leading the oil and fats market.


Nigeria is the second largest producer of sesame seed in Africa, and ranking seventh in the World, with an estimated production of 120,000 metric tones annually. The major African producers of the commodity include Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Niger, Egypt, Mali, Burkina Faso, Tanzania and Chad.

Sesame seed as a value-added product: Through the ages, sesame seeds have been a source of food and oil. About 65 percent of the annual sesame crop is processed into oil and 35 percent is used in food. The food segment includes about 42 percent roasted sesame, 36 percent washed sesame, 12 percent ground sesame and 10 percent roasted sesame seed with salt.

GOVERNMENT ROLE; The Government of Nigeria has ultimately taken decision to establish associations that over see sesame seed production and export they include


NATIONAL SESAME SEEDS FACILITY: The facility is to provide direct financial assistance to qualified registered companies under a special credit scheme to undertake the exports of Sesame Seeds from Nigeria.

ELIGIBILITY: The exporter must be a registered credit-worthy export company that is incorporated in Nigeria and is a certified member of the National Sesame Seeds Association of Nigeria.

COLLATERAL REQUIREMENTS: In addition to the commodity being used as collateral through the use of reputable warehouse/collateral managers, the bank shall also secure the facility through one or a combination of the following:
*Assignments of the underlying export receivables to

Nigeria Export & Import Bank

;
• First legal charge on export item (stock);
* Personal and Several Guarantees of the promoters and sponsors;
* NSSAN Guarantee.

Other requirements: In addition to the requirements under the eligibility criteria, a company seeking to benefit from the facility shall forward a formal application to

Nigeria Export & Import Bank accompanied by the following documents: Disbursement:

Nigeria Export & Import Bank

shall disburse approved funds upon fulfillment of all conditions precedent to draw down.

Nigeria Export & Import Bank shall support each transaction presented under this window up to 80% of the Naira equivalent of the cost of executing the underlying export order. Approved funds shall be disbursed in installment strictly under a warehouse financing arrangement, upon receipt of certified warrants from the appointed warehouse/collateral managers.

PRODUCING STATES;


Sesame seed is produced in Benue, Taraba, Kebbi, Kano, Bauchi, Kogi, Plateau, Adamawa, Kwara, Cross-River, Ebonyi, Niger, Gombe, Katsina, Yobe, Bomo and Nassarawa States, with Nassarawa State being the leading producer. Nigeria has realized a sum of 150 million dollars from the export of sesame seed during the 2004-2005 cropping season. The country's export market was increasing with the entrance of China and South Korea, in addition to Japan, Turkey, Iran and Europe.

Some 150 tons have already been exported to China with another consignment of 500 tons ready for shipment, sesame seed export now ranked second after cocoa in terms of value and volume of crop export. About 750 million dollars would be realized from sesame seed export within the next three to four years.

SESAME SEED TYPES & USES:

 There are two types of sesame seeds in Nigeria which is the white and black sesame seed. Both qualities are widely accepted in the International market.

HARVESTING PERIOD:

Given the potential of rainfall in many regions, it is probably best to plan on timely harvest of the crop. Sesame harvest usually begins about 90 to 150 days after planting. To obtain high-quality seeds, the crop must be harvested before the first killing frost.

STORAGE:

Since sesame seed is a small flat seed, it is difficult to move much air through it in a storage bin. Therefore, the seeds need to be harvested as dry as possible and stored at 6 percent moisture or less. If the seed is too moist, it can quickly heat up and become rancid.

Processing:

 After harvesting, the seeds are cleaned and hulled. The seeds pass through an air separation stage to remove any foreign particles. About 10 percent of this 'cleaned natural seed' moves directly into food use as whole seed to be blended into flour for baked goods. Next, a combination of water and friction work together as the seeds are passed against the chamber of the hulling machine to separate the hull from the seeds. This dust-free De-hulled seed makes up 30 percent of domestic production and has 99.97 percent purity for the baked goods market. Once the seeds have been hulled, they are passed through an electronic color-sorting machine that rejects any discolored seeds to ensure perfectly colored sesame seeds. Immature or off-sized seed is removed but saved for oil production.

SPECIFICATION:

 Moisture Content-6-8 % Max, Oil Contentt49%, Admixture- 2% Max, Other colurs-2%,

Packing;

 50,80 or 100 Kg PP bags.

Pricing;

The price at the International market is currently 1,100 dollars per tones, however if you can get an order from Singapore you can sell for 1,800 dollars per tone. A 20 feet container will contain 18 tonnes.

Nigeria's earnings from produce export jumps to Naira 50.6bn: Nigeria realized over Naira50.6 billion ($341.8 million) from export of agriculture produce in 2008. The Federal Ministry of Commerce and Industry in the export statistics made available said that the figure was N2.9 billion higher than the N47.7 billion realized in 2007. The report, however, said that the total volume of the nation's produce export nosedived to 270 million tons in 2008 from 279 million tons recorded in the previous year. Some of the produce exported during the period under review include cocoa, cocoa butter, cocoa cake, ginger, sesame seeds, cashew nuts, Shea nuts, cotton lint, palm kernel cake, Shea butter, rubber, chilies, among others. A further breakdown of the statistics showed that export of some produce like cocoa beans increase from 141,084 tons to 159, 189 tons, ginger, 2,052 tons to 2,712 tons, cotton lint, 14,054 tons to 20,695 tons and cashew kernels, 693 tons to 4,531 tons.

Local consumption:

 Industrial processing and utilization of sesame seed have not been fully developed in Nigeria. However, the product is locally processed and utilized in various forms in the states where the crop is cultivated. Principal among the products are: kantun ridi and kunun ridi. At the local level oil is also extracted from the seed and the cake is made into kulikuli which together with the leaves are used to prepare local soup known as miyar taushe. The oil is used locally for cooking as well as for medicinal purposes such as the treatment of ulcers and burns. The stem and the oil extract are equally used in making local soap. In all the states where sesame is cultivated, women are more involved in the local processing of sesame seed into commercial products. A more convenient de-hulling technique has been developed through addition of 3% Sodium Chloride (salt) and soaking over night. Roasting of seed at 100 degrees Celsius also gives optimum oil yield. The National Cereals Research Institute, Badeggi, has developed a 10kg hydraulic hand press for household and small-scale sesame oil extraction.

Three companies dominate the buying and export of sesame: Olam Nigeria, Akkay Limited, Dangote and Dantata. In South Korea, their government is buying. Starting with little or no capital: Can you source for sesame seed? If yes I want to congratulate you, because you can actually start to make money from this product either by selling directly to the exporters and earning money receiving finders’ fees from the exporters or by exporting to the major international buyers and start earning million of dollars.

A greater understanding of the position of Nigeria and its options is needed

and the following notes elaborate recommendations towards this goal.

RECOMMENDATIONS

1. Appraise and evaluate the research, trials and extension services available to the sesame seed sector.

2. Investigate opportunities in other markets, with particular focus initially on the oil markets of the Far East, Korea and Taiwan.

3. Explore the possibility of changes in the Korean tendering process.

4. Evaluate the Competitive position of Nigerian sesame seed

in the Japanese market and assess the opportunity for increasing market share.

5. In conjunction with recommendation #4, evaluate the opportunity for differentiating Nigerian sesame seed for oil users and explore the economics and market potential for pressing

Sesame seed in Nigeria on an industrial scale.

6. Appraise the requirements of other sesame seed sectors