The Cocoa Farmers Association of Nigeria (CFAN), has urged Governor Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa to urgently review downward the recent directive mandating the payment of ₦250,000 per hectare for polygon mapping and permit renewal within the state’s forest reserves.
The farmers, under the umbrella of the Cocoa Farmers Association of Nigeria (CFAN), made the plea in an open letter signed by their National President, Comrade Adeola Adegoke, who also doubles as the Global President of the Cocoa Farmers Alliance Association of Africa (COFAAA).
In the letter addressed to the Governor and copied to the Honourable Commissioner for Agriculture and Forestry, Engr. Leye Akinola, and other top government officials, the farmers expressed deep concern that the new levy could cripple cocoa production and push thousands of smallholder farmers out of business.
According to the association, the new directive requiring ₦100,000 for a five-year permit and ₦150,000 for polygon mapping is “a mountain too high to climb” for smallholder cocoa farmers who form the backbone of Ondo’s agricultural economy.
Adegoke described the policy as “unsustainable and unjust,” noting that it widens the economic gap between smallholder farmers and large investors who enjoy long-term concessions at much cheaper rates. He lamented that the levy, coming at a time of global price instability and rising production costs, would further impoverish farmers already battling inflation, poor infrastructure, and limited access to finance.
“The timing of this policy could not be more difficult,” Adegoke said. “Many farmers have begun to abandon their farms, unable to see a future in cocoa production. Some are widows and elderly farmers whose livelihoods depend entirely on their small cocoa plots. For them, ₦250,000 is not an administrative fee — it is an unbearable burden”
While acknowledging the Aiyedatiwa administration’s commendable efforts in infrastructure, education, and agricultural development, CFAN appealed for a more compassionate approach that balances sustainability with the welfare of local farmers. The association emphasized that although it supports the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) and global sustainability goals, the regulation was designed to aid farmers’ transition to traceable and deforestation-free cocoa production — not to punish them financially.
“If implemented in its current form, this policy could discourage farmers from participating in sustainability programs, thereby undermining EUDR compliance,” the letter warned.
Highlighting Ondo State’s pivotal role in Nigeria’s cocoa industry, Adegoke noted that the state produces about 90,000 metric tonnes annually — nearly one-third of the nation’s total output — largely through the efforts of smallholder farmers. He cautioned that policies that stifle these farmers could erode the state’s long-held reputation as “the leading cocoa-producing state in Nigeria”
The farmers urged the governor to suspend enforcement of the ₦250,000 payment pending wider consultation and to convene an emergency meeting involving government officials and representatives of the cocoa sector to find a fair and sustainable solution. They also recommended a drastic reduction of the levy to reflect current economic realities and to ensure equity between smallholder farmers and large-scale investors.
Adegoke concluded with a heartfelt plea for the governor’s intervention, describing Aiyedatiwa as a listening and compassionate leader.
“Your Excellency, please do not allow the tears of farmers to water the soil of our cocoa heritage. Let history remember you as the governor who strengthened agriculture with fairness and compassion,” he said.
The letter was also copied to the Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Agriculture and Agribusiness, Permanent Secretaries of the Ministries of Agriculture and Forestry, and leaders of other agricultural associations in the state.
