The 2020 Carter Conference on “Shifting Momentum in African Agriculture through Research and Technologies: Smart Agriculture, Smart Growth, Smart Kids” took place December 10th to 11th. This year’s conference featured two keynote speakers, the first of which was Dr. Ayoola Oduntan. He is the Group Managing Director of natnudO Foods.
Dr. Oduntan’s lecture was titled, “Research and Innovation to Improve Nutrition, Profit and Social Impact in West African Backyards.” He began by discussing Nigeria’s role as the largest economy in Africa and its reliance on oil. Dr. Oduntan argues that a move towards agriculture will not only help the economy but will also address the high poverty and large-scale undernutrition rates. Nigeria is a net food importer, which means the prices of basic goods like poultry and eggs are inaccessible to poor households. The majority of poor households (almost 110 million people live on under a $1 a day) cannot afford to purchase these leading to increased undernutrition.
As a response to these issues, Dr. Oduntan led the first pure line breeding company in Africa that produces Noiler. A Noiler is a genetically optimized bird that has been specifically bred to be used as a food source for both meat and eggs, while simultaneously thriving in the Nigerian climate. The Noiler breed itself was developed by Dr. Oduntan’s poultry business known as natnudO Group. His business not only sells poultry products to Nigerian enterprises but also operates hatcheries and feed mills. The goal is to increase the number of Noilers in poor Nigerian and West African households with the primary mission of tackling protein-related malnutrition in children. His unique model is grounded in creating a sustainable market for Noilers that creates opportunities for farmers, women, and ensures children get the protein they need.
According to Dr. Oduntan, 29 million day-old chicks have been supplied to small holder farmers in West Africa between 2014 and 2020. 778,492 small holder farmers and 3,648 mother units have benefited from the program. Mother units are women whose jobs are to vaccinate Noiler chicks from day-one to 5 weeks. Thereafter, they are able to sell the chicks to smallholder farmers. The smallholder farmers then raise them and eventually sell them for an income. These farmers are encouraged to both sell and consume some meat/eggs provided by the Noiler. Dr. Oduntan hopes to increase the Noiler’s current footprint past West Africa and continue to help address issues related to infant and maternal mortality, food insecurity, and hunger/stunted growth of malnourished children.