A training programme held by the Bank of Industry (BoI) in Lagos has underlined the need for Nigerian firms to enhance packaging for their products.
Although the United States has welcomed African imports under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), Nigerian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) remain locked out of US markets by poor packaging.
In a presentation on ‘Breaking the jinx of poor packaging’, Victoria Ironbar blamed packaging for Nigerian SMEs failure to gain from AGOA, which was passed in 2000.
“You can make money from packaging ideas not necessary products,” she told participants, according to local media reports.
“There is power in packaging ideas, packaging is next to grading and branding, packaging should be able to tell what a product stands for.”
She advised Nigerian producers to embrace branding and seek out better technical performance from their packaging.
“For instance, researching on parameters on how to curb losses such as dehydrating and packing vegetables in a way that its shelf longevity will be improved and nutritional components retained,” she said.