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The Federal Government of Nigeria recently acquired 110 rice milling machines, which, if everything goes as per the set plans, would be installed in different parts of the country. The installation process is expected to continue until the end of July, and is aimed to boost the dwindling production of rice in the country.

Ignoring the barriers of the income and the living standards of the people living in any city, state or country, rice is affordable by the maximum chunk of the population. Besides this, rice is the staple food form in many states and many Asian countries. This is a clear indication that a huge amount of the diverse quantities of this food item is and will be traded to other countries, which do not have sufficient production.

About 65% of India’s population consumes rice, making it one of the most important food crops in the country. Rice, in its raw form cannot be consumed and therefore, the need for processing surfaces. Typically, a milling process involves 3 basic stages:

1. Husking
2. Whitening/polishing
3. Blending, grading and packaging

One of the leading agri-businesses, Olam International operates from seed to shelf in more than 60 countries, providing food and raw materials to over 23,000 customers worldwide. With their global rice supply chain and immense market strength, they have successfully linked their rice farms and smallholder farmers to clients in all the major rice consuming country.

Rice is a standout amongst the most essential nourishment edit over the world that is prepared in the rice processing plants concerning the global measures remembering the consistency and the fundamental nature of the grain. There are diverse rice processing hardware’s and rice mills and processes which are utilized for the correct preparing of rice and guarantee its most extreme handling limit in less measure of time.

Just like a lot of other countries, Nigeria’s staple food item is rice. It’s one of the largest importers of rice in the African continent. Africa’s most populous country is also the largest consumer of rice. What’s troubling is the fact that it still relies on the imports to satiate its growing rice consumption needs.

A good storage facility ensures safe storage conditions for the grains whilst protecting them from adverse weather conditions, pests, moisture, and micro-organisms. Depending upon the quality of the grains to be stored and the purpose of storage, a wide range of storage methods can be adopted. The most popular ones, however, are storage silos.

At the time of harvest, the moisture content of the rice grains ranges between 18 -25%. Post the harvest, the most critical operation is paddy drying. Drying reduces the moisture content in the grain which is a requisite if it is to be stored. Delaying the drying process or drying it unevenly would result in a qualitative loss.