The Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) charged local exporters to tap into global animal trade valued at $635 billion.

The Executive Director/CEO, Nigerian Export Promotion Council,  Mr. Olusegun Awolowo, while speaking at a one-day capacity building programme on best practices for animal and animal products for export, said that the workshop with the theme, “Compliance and Adherence to Food Safety Measures for Animal and Animal Products Exporters in line with International Best Practices” is geared towards complying with the European Union (EU) and other global markets requirement for animal and animal products imports.

Some other objectives include: To train and retrain animal and animal products practitioners on compliance and adherence to best practices and standards for export; to ensure that animal and animal products practitioners are trained on appropriate packaging and technical issues and to ensure that animal and animal products export trade is carried in a formal manner aimed at avoiding their rejection.

Awolowo who was represented by the Director, Product Development, Mr. Olajide Ibrahim, pointed out that Nigeria in 2014 exported leather products worth $487 million which is 17.97 per cent of its non-oil export earnings.

He hinted that it is estimated that the EU imported animal products such as: live animals, meat, fish, snails, crustaceans, among others worth about 15 billion euro, while according to the International Trade Centre (ITC) trade map, world trade in animal and animal products is estimated at about $365 billion.