It is no doubt that an average Nigerian knows, and uses palm oil almost on daily basis. But some people may not actually know that there is a hidden wealth in Palm Oil.
Nigeria is a home of natural resources, and a home of business opportunities. No matter the population Nigeria may have in years to come, we can not still harvest all the business opportunities in the country.
It is always funny hearing that one may have a capital for business but may not know any business to venture into. This kind of people would always complain that all the business opportunities in Nigeria have been saturated.
But the truth is that, the more you open your eyes wider to search for business opportunities, the more you see even unharvested better opportunities for you.
Among all the natural resources in Nigeria, palm oil is one of them that have business potential, and may not require much capital to set up.
Why Palm Oil Business is Very Lucrative
Palm oil is a promising lucrative business commodity because it falls within our everyday use. Almost every the food we eat on daily basis requires palm oil.
Every region of the country use palm oil, unlike some food stuff that my be restricted to a certain tribe or region. Whether you are in the Northern or Southern part of Nigeria, palm oil remains a general commodity.
I was surprised one day that I went to one villages in the North to buy crayfish, and they told me that they don’t sell or eat crayfish in their village.
This is unlikely to palm oil, as there is no place in Nigeria that doesn’t use palm oil. This is one reason that palm oil business would always be very lucrative.
How Much Can I use to Start Palm Oil Business in Nigeria?
Starting a palm oil business in Nigeria may not really require a lot of capital as you may think, but how mature or huge you would want the business to be depends on the capital you put in it.
Let me give you this breakdown so that you can easily brainstorm the kind of capital you will be hoping on.
As at the time of writing this post, the average price of a 25-liter Jerrycan of palm oil in some places, ranges from N20,000 to N35,000; depending on the place. In some villages or remote areas, you can even get them at a very lower price.
There is always time that palm oil is cheap and time when it will be very costly. When the price goes high, these 25-litter Jerrycan you bought for N20,000 may be selling at a very higher price, even up to N50,000.
Let’s say you are able to buy 20 pieces of 25-liter Palm oil for N20,000 each when the price is cheap; this will actually cost a total of N400,000.
If you are able to sell them at the rate of N50,000 per Jerrycan when the price goes high, it means you may be making a total of N1 million; meaning you were able to make a profit of N600,000 within the space of time, though some expenses may be incurred.
This means that if you have a capital of N400,000 or even less, you can easily start making money buying and selling palm oil in Nigeria.
How Do I Start Palm Oil Business in Nigeria?
Making money with palm oil business may not really require any certificate or technical skills. The first thing you need to do is to scout for your capital, look around you to know the possible means through which you can source your capital. But if you already have your capital, that’s wonderful!
Now that you have your capital, the question you should ask yourself is, “when is the right time to buy?”
You can easily know the right time to buy and store palm oil, by asking questions. Ask around, especially those market women that deal with palm oil.
Ascertain if the price is currently higher than normal or lower. If the price is higher than usual, then it may not really be the right time to buy. You may have to wait for the price to come down before you buy and store your palm oil.
1. Buy And Store Palm Oil When It’s Cheap
Though the price of palm oil may vary from place to place, but the best places you can get it at very cheaper rate is in the remote areas, that is in villages.
So, if you actually want to make it big from Palm oil business, then you should always consider buying from those villages or other places where the palm oil is very cheap.
There are actually some states in Nigeria that have a lot of palm oil; States like Akwa Ibom, Enugu, Ebonyi, and so on. In these states, a lot of palm oil can be found in the villages, and can always be gotten at a very cheaper rate.
In fact, almost all the palm oil we use today, is coming from villages. Even in my States, there are some villages that have more than enough oil, and are always ready to sell it out at any little price, because they don’t know what to do with the excesses.
I could remember a guy from my State, who did his National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Due to the pandemic lockdown, he was actually not staying where he was posted to serve, he was rather staying within our home town.
He was receiving his NYSC monthly allowance even while staying at home, because of the pandemic lockdown.
Though he was receiving his monthly allowance, he was staying idle and finding it difficult to venture into any business because nothing was working out due to the pandemic.
At a point, I had to suggest to him, to use little of his NYSC savings to start palm oil business. I told him to start buying palm oil because it was very cheap then.
The interesting thing about the whole story is that palm oil later became hot cake after he had stored enough of it.
The proceeds he made from it was the major thing that helped him to start the business he is doing today, after his NYSC.
So, if your State has enough Palm oil, look for the particular villages in your State that always produce enough and cheap palm oil, go there and get as much as you can afford.
But if your State does not have enough Palm oil, you are still free to make it inter-state business by checking out on other States that have palm oil, especially Akwa Ibom, Enugu, Ebonyi, and so on.
2. Sell Your Palm Oil When the Price Appreciates
The cost of palm oil is always higher when the season is going out. In this period, you can definitely make good profit, selling out your stored palm oil, especially if you bought at very cheap rate.
Where Do I Sell Palm Oil In Nigeria?
If you have been able to store your palm oil until the price becomes costlier, you may not really have problems getting where to sell them.
I could remember when I was in Akwa Ibom, I had some friends that were doing the business. They would always come from Abia State, and stay in Akwa Ibom for up to a month, buying the oil from villages.
They always rent some shops there, where they keep the palm oil until it is up to the quantity they want to transport to other states.
Sometimes it would even be the villagers that would be bringing the palm oil in small quantities for them to buy, because almost every village there doesn’t know what to do with the excess palm oil they have.
You can sell your palm oil even in your state, but within the town. There are also many states you can sell your palm oil if you don’t want to sell it in your state.
It would be interesting to reveal to you that most States in the North don’t have palm trees, nor palm oil. They depend mostly on palm oil being supplied from other states.
This suggest that the Northern States would be another nice places to sell your palm oil and make your cool money.
So, since there are actually many places you can sell your palm oil at a higher price, then it means running your palm oil business would not really be a Problem.
Conclusion
There is no business that is a neat business unless you make it neat. Don’t see palm oil business as a dirty one, you can actually give it a swag and add value to it. One good thing about palm oil business is that it’s a kind of investment business, and does not stop you from other business engagements. So, think outside the box, as there may not be limit to the amount of money you can make from palm oil business, as long as you are doing the right thing.
