​The most frequently asked questions about starting cassava flour processing business in Nigeria

Cassava flour processing has been one of the most promising businesses in Nigeria. The article will briefly introduce questions and answers related to cassava flour processing and machines. Hope this can help you get a better idea of the business.

Question One: Is it feasible and profitable to produce cassava flour in Nigeria?

Answer: All data shows that the business is feasible and profitable in Nigeria. The followings are some specific content.

Cassava flour applications

Wide application and high demand for cassava flour

Cassava flour can be used as a substitute for wheat flour and is widely used in food production fields like bread, biscuits, noodles, etc. Especially after the outbreak of the Russo-Ukrainian War, the price of wheat flour increases a lot, and people have to find alternatives. Cassava flour is considered to be the first choice and there is a large demand for it.

Encouragement policy from the Nigeria government

Despite its wide application of cassava products, there is a large quantity of cassava tubers are wasted due to poor management. At the same time, a lot of people are still starving because of the food shortage. Therefore, the Nigerian government publishes a policy to encourage people to build up a factory, producing cassava goods, among which cassava flour is one of the most popular products. BOI bank provides loans at a low rate for people who want to do a cassava flour processing factory.

Lots of cassava in Nigeria

Cheap raw cassava and expensive cassava flour make it profitable

Raw cassava roots are everywhere in Nigeria. If you buy cassava tubers in large quantities, the average price for one ton of cassava is 50usd. While the price for 1 ton of cassava flour is 700-800usd. About 4 tons of cassava can produce 1 ton high quality flour, despite labor costs and running expenses, there is still a large profit space.

Question Two: How to start a cassava flour production business in Nigeria?

Answer: When you have a plan for setting up a cassava flour processing factory, there are several factors that need to be considered: money, land, raw material source, labor, and running costs.

Get enough fund

Capital is the first thing you need to consider. Whether you gather money yourself, partner with others, or find an investor, you need to include the cost for the following items:

A: Equipment cost

B: Land and workshop construction cost

C: Running cost (mainly water and electricity consumption)

D: Raw cassava cost (farming or buying from other farmers)

E: Labor cost

F: Transportation cost

Enough raw cassava supply

Get enough raw cassava supply

Before the factory is set up, you need to ensure that you can get an adequate and stable supply of cassava tubers. Whether you do cassava farming yourself or you need to buy from farmers, you need to plan it well in advance. For example, if you want to set up a 2t/h processing line. Suppose that you are going to run for 10 hours, you need to get 20 tons of cassava every day.

Find a sales channel for cassava flour

Cassava flour is mostly applied in the food production field. You can talk to some food production factories like biscuit production, noddles production, bear production, etc. It is very important to get the sales price and market demand quantity for cassava flour.

Find a good supplier for the cassava flour processing plant

It is better to find a factory rather than a trading company to get machines. The manufacturer can provide more competitive prices, ensure delivery time, and after sales service.

Find a place to set up a cassava flour processing plant

Select land and construct the workshop

It’s better to find a place that is close to the raw material source. Besides, the road to the sales market should be smooth and convenient. What’s more, water and electricity should be available in the area. After the site is prepared, you can build up the workshop according to the drawings provided by the equipment supplier.

Hire some workers

It is necessary to find a technician or engineer who works in a factory to manage the factory. To help workers understand machines well, it’s suggested to ask them to get involved in machinery installation.

Question Three: What machines are needed in the cassava flour processing plant?

Answer: Now there are two processing methods for making cassava flour: one is wet processing and another is dry processing. The wet processing is cleaning, washing, peeling, crushing, dewatering, drying, and sieving. While dry processing is cleaning, washing, peeling, slicing, drying, milling and sieving.

Automatic cassava flour processing machine

The cassava flour processing line designed by Henan Jinrui company adopts the world's advanced wet processing technology. Fresh cassava is used as raw material. Compared with dry processing, wet processing can realize automatic and continuous production, and the contact time between materials and air is short, which can ensure the whiteness of the finished product. Under normal circumstances, about 4 tons of cassava can produce 1 ton of flour.

The main machines used in wet processing methods are:

Feeding hopper---dry sieve (cleaning) --- paddle washer (washing) ---peeler (peeling)---cutter and rasper (cassava cutting and crushing)---de-sander (desanding)---filter presser (dewatering) ---flash dryer (drying) ---sifter (sieving)---packaging machine.

Above are brief answers to some questions. If you still have other questions about setting up a cassava flour processing factory, feel free to contact us any time.