One of Nigeria's largest cocoa exporters is putting serious money into keeping more of the crop's value at home. Sunbeth Global Concepts Limited is building a 70,000-metric-tonne cocoa processing factory alongside an 80,000-metric-tonne cashew processing plant, both under construction in Sagamu, Ogun State, and scheduled for commissioning in March 2027, according to BusinessDay and THISDAY.
From Trader to Processor
The Managing Director of Sunbeth, Olasunkanmi Owoyemi, announced the dual investment at the Africa Cocoa Finance and Investment Forum held at the London Stock Exchange, framing it as part of a long-term strategy to deepen value addition across Africa's agricultural chains, according to Leadership. The company has evolved from a commodity trading enterprise into an integrated processor, a transition designed to capture greater value, create employment and improve efficiency. Owoyemi stressed that scale alone would not sustain the plants, arguing that a large processing facility is only as viable as the supply chain feeding it, and that vertical integration and backward integration into farming are central to the plan, according to Food Business MEA.
Serving Home and Export Markets
The cocoa factory is expected to strengthen Nigeria's position in the global cocoa processing industry, while the cashew plant is aimed at growing demand across West Africa and premium export markets in Europe, Asia and the Americas, according to THISDAY. Sunbeth already operates in Nigeria, Ghana and Cameroon, three of West Africa's major cocoa producers, and runs offices in London, Dubai and New York to widen access to markets and trade finance, according to BusinessDay. The work sits under the company's Orange Cocoa Sustainability Framework, which centres on quality control, farmer education and partnerships.
Why Value Addition Matters
Nigeria has long exported raw cocoa and cashew and imported the finished goods made from them, capturing only a slice of the value. Building industrial-scale processing at home is meant to reverse that, retaining more earnings and jobs inside the country while giving farmers a steadier off-taker for their beans and nuts. For a food economy exposed to currency swings, more domestic processing is one route to a more resilient supply base.
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