UNIBEN Commissions NSPRI AROC Postharvest Hub to Boost Food Security and Empower Communities

The University of Benin (UNIBEN) has taken a giant stride in Agricultural Research and Food Security in Nigeria with the commissioning of the Agricultural Research Outreach Center (AROC) Postharvest Hub on March 27, 2025. The occasion was attended by big shots, including the Vice Chancellor of UNIBEN, Prof. Edoba Bright Omorege who thanked the Nigerian Stored Products Research Institute (NSPRI) for siting the Hub in the university.

In his remarks, Prof. Emeritus Igene, the grandfather of Food Science Department in UNIBEN, said the commissioning of the Postharvest Hub is a big deal not only for the university but for the community at large. He emphasized the importance of postharvest research especially to the youth and women empowerment. According to him, this will create jobs and improve the livelihoods of many Nigerians.

The Executive Director of NSPRI, Prof. Lateef Oladimeji Sanni, said UNIBEN as a foundation university will play a key role in advancing postharvest research in the country. He said that the establishment of the Postharvest Hub is a big step towards achieving food security and that the facility will be a centre of excellence in this area.

The Vice Chancellor of the University of Benin, Prof. Omorege, thanked NSPRI for siting the Postharvest Hub in the university and assured stakeholders that the university will manage and oversee the operation of the facility. Omorege also urged all stakeholders to intensify efforts towards improving food storage and postharvest processing which is key to reducing food losses and improving food availability.

The event ended with a tour of the Hub’s state of the art facilities including the Parabolic Shaped Solar Dryer (PSSD), Inert Atmosphere Silo, Smoking Kilns and Hermetic Storage drums which are technologies developed by NSPRI that play a big role in food preservation and processing techniques so that Nigeria can manage its produce better.