Nigeria, the world’s third fastest growing country by population, is the latest nation to be added to the ProVeg global portfolio.
ProVeg Nigeria aims to ‘promote healthy and tasty food that is both climate and animal-friendly’.
The organization will be ‘heralding its message’ from the Atlantic coastal city of Lagos – home to 25 million inhabitants – to the Sahel region, below the Sahara desert.
“I’m truly thrilled about the opening of the ProVeg Nigeria office and the impact we will have in raising awareness about the need to transform the food system to help people transition to healthier, more climate-friendly diets,” comments Hakeem Jimo, the new country director of ProVeg Nigeria.
“The people who will benefit most from this transition are those in the Global South for whom land pressures from animal agriculture have forced them to leave their land. Our policy work will push for a national strategy that implements a better food system by encouraging food innovation, particularly in the plant-based egg, milk and protein spaces,” Jimo adds.
The people who will benefit most from this transition are those in the Global South
The launch will see the group collaborating with ProVeg chef Bola Adeyanju – an ambassador for Chefs for Change – who will demonstrate ‘just how easy and delicious it is to incorporate plant-based proteins into traditional Nigerian cuisine’.
In a message to Nigerian residents, Adeyanju says: “You can make all the typical Nigerian food like suya, asun, and even nkwobi and stews like egusi and efo riro – and of course Nigeria’s popular jollof rice with fried meat – all in a mouth-watering plant-based style. We will be cooking up these treats – possibly in a market or university near you – or tell us where we should come to, and then get a taste of how great plant-based life can be.”
Prior to joining ProVeg’s global network the Nigerian team had been engaged with outreach work in schools, mosques and churches, and pushing for greater adoption of plant-based options on the menus of restaurants and ‘bukkas’ street food vendors.
Having the ProVeg Nigeria team on board … is a major step forward
In Nigeria, which is on track to become the third most populous nation by 2050, meat consumption is on the rise, currently predicted to increase by more than 300% by 2040 – something ProVeg International hopes the new cohort will be able to halt.
“We really welcome Nigeria to the ProVeg fold,” says Sebastian Joy, president of ProVeg International. “ProVeg has an important role to play to ensure people have access to balanced plant-based diets to slow down and hopefully even reverse the current growth in meat consumption. Having the ProVeg Nigeria team on board … is a major step forward for us.”
Planned collaborations with businesses such as VeggieVictory, Nigeria’s leading vegan food company – recently ranked in the global FoodTech 500 – will see the group boost the country’s plant-based ecosystem.
