Farmer Outlets is an online shop which serves as a platform for farmers, farm produce buyers and agri-business investors to buy and sell agricultural products. Because of the way it’s set up, it offers far more than the physical produce market. The site leverages on the reach afforded by an online presence to create a potentially national space for marketers of agricultural produce, inputs, and other agro-related services which are accessible from anywhere in Nigeria and beyond.
But the perishable nature of agricultural products means that a large number of customers would still prefer to source their produce locally. Farmer Outlets takes care of this by listing available products in categories with respect to seller’s locations. Product categories indicated on the site include fruits, vegetables, grains, poultry, crops, livestock, and brand cut products. A buyer interested in ordering tomatoes for her restaurant, for example, can choose the ‘vegetables’ option, click on tomatoes, and select the state and city from which she desires to order her tomatoes. Farmers and other producers whose products have been ordered get notifications which enable them to contact the intending buyer. Produce can be picked up or delivered, depending on the need of the buyer and the service offered by the seller.
Farmer Outlets also provides information related to agriculture in Nigeria, as well as an avenue for farmers to showcase their farms.
Taking the business of agriculture online greatly expands the possibilities for players in Nigeria’s agricultural sector. The future of agri-business in the country may eventually come to rest upon such vendor-customer interfaces as Farmer Outlets provides.