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TUE SEPT 08 2026-theGBJournal| The Enugu United Palm Products Limited (UPPL), a public-private partnership between Pragmatic Palms Limited and the Enugu State Government, has commenced commercial production of palm oil for the Nigerian market, with plans to expand into refined products and establish a new industrial complex.
The development was disclosed on Monday by the Managing Director of the company, Prof. George Nwangwu, when he led other directors of the firm to Government House, Enugu, to brief Governor Peter Mbah on the progress of the company since the commencement of its operations two years ago.
Nwangwu said the company had restored its plantations in Ibite-Olo, Umulokpa and Ugwu-Oba, located in Ezeagu, Uzo-Uwani and Oji River Local Government Areas of the state, respectively, to productive use.
According to him, the company has so far replanted over 1,000 hectares and is gradually replacing old palm trees, some of which are more than 50 years old.
“When we took over, the place was thick forest and nothing but a dead place. We came in and turned the place from being a forest into a plantation.
“We have cleared the whole place, pruned the trees that were there and started replanting. The trees we met were very old, over 50 years old, and so they needed to be replaced. Gradually, we are replacing them. So far, we’ve planted over 1,000 hectares. The idea is to keep planting until we replant the entire plantation and renew all the trees that are there,” he said.
The UPPL boss said the company was moving beyond primary agricultural production by investing in processing and value addition, noting that it had installed mills and improved the quality and volume of palm oil production.
He disclosed that the company was also investing $2.2 million in a refinery that would process Crude Palm Oil (CPO) into olein and stearin, while refining palm kernel oil.
“We also understand that this is a business and not just planting. Agriculture has moved beyond planting alone. We need to process because value addition is important. So, we’re milling our oil now. We’ve improved the quality and quantity of the oil that we’re producing.
“We have installed mills and also invested heavily in refining the products further down the line. We’re investing about $2.2 million to install a refinery. The refinery will not only refine our Crude Palm Oil (CPO) into olein and stearin, it will also refine our palm kernel oil,” Nwangwu said.
He added that the company was developing a new industrial complex to consolidate its production and processing operations.
Nwangwu further disclosed that the company’s palm oil brand, EVOP, had been launched and was already available in open markets and supermarkets across Nigeria, with sachet packaging expected to hit the market within two weeks.
He explained that the EVOP name was chosen to connect the product with the region’s agricultural and industrial heritage, particularly the former AVOP vegetable oil brand produced in Nachi, Udi LGA.
“We chose the name EVOP to make sure that we keep in touch with our historical foundation. Some of us who are old enough would remember AVOP vegetable oil being bottled in Nachi, Udi. We feel that this is the product of our people and we had to connect with our historical beginnings.
“That’s why we called it EVOP, to connect with and remind people of our historical AVOP,” he said.
According to him, the company’s objective is to make the product accessible to households across Nigeria while maintaining strict standards of quality, natural production and traceability.
“The important takeaway about this palm oil is that it’s natural. Our plantations are in Ibite-Olo, Umulokpa and Ugwu-Oba.
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