Ellah Lakes Takes Over 4,000 Hectares ‘Poorly Managed Adarice Farms’ From Enugu Govt

Ellah Lakes Plc said it has completed the take-over of the management and operations of Ada Rice Farms and its assets from Enugu State Government.

Ada Rice is located in Adani community of Uzo-uwani local government area of Enugu state.

The company said on Friday that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Enugu State Government for the tak-over.

The rice farm has over 4,000 hectares of land, including 1,000 hectares of land which was used for offices.

Out of the 4000 hectares for farming, 1,200 hectares was developed, the state commissioner for agriculture, Matthew Idu had said.

Rice farming is the strength of Adani community where the farm is located, but the new owner want to expand to other staple food.

The rice farm went into dilapidation after 2008 and 2011, as “lot of things went wrong, the irrigation was not functioning,” the state government had admitted in 2021.

But a N3.1bn rehabilitation process had begun in the farm courtesy of a deal sealed by the State Government.

The new owner had in 2021 said the company would produce and process rice with the participation of over 200 indigenous Farmers in the local out-grower program.

Announcing the takeover, Ella Lakes said the farm has been badly run over the years.

The firm said, “Adarice Farms is a 5,000 Hectare farming estate located in Adani, Uzo -Uwani Local Government Area in Enugu State, that has a Diversion Dam and a 15km main canal for irrigation, it also has secondary distribution canals, to enable farming all year round.

“The Farm has operated sub-optimally for several years and the Adani Staple Crop Processing Zone Food Company (“Adani SCPZ”) a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), has been set up to oversee and manage the farm and its activities”.

The Chief Executive Officer, Chuka Mordi said, “Today is a great day for the Company, and we have achieved yet another of our set milestones for 2022.

“We are ready to commence the management and turnaround of the fortunes of Adarice farms, and we fully intend to take the Farm to new heights with the cultivation and processing of Rice, Soybean and Cassava.

“Ultimately, the plan is to turn the entire area into a Staple Crop Processing Zone & bring economic growth and prosperity to the entire subregion.”