The Agro Trading Problem in Nigeria — and Why We Built TBT Agro
Agriculture remains the backbone of Nigeria’s economy, employing over 60% of the population and contributing significantly to GDP. But despite this, one of the most critical sectors in the country faces a persistent and costly problem — broken agro commodity trade systems.
From fluctuating prices to exploitative middlemen and lack of structured markets, the agro-trading landscape is riddled with challenges that limit the potential of farmers, frustrate buyers, and stunt growth. At TBT Agro, we saw this first-hand — and that’s why we built a solution.
The Problem
Let’s break down what’s wrong:
1. Lack of Market Access for Farmers Most smallholder farmers in Nigeria do not have direct access to buyers. They rely on middlemen who often take the lion's share of the profits. This leaves farmers with little bargaining power and limited income for their hard work.
2. Price Opacity and Market Exploitation
Without access to real-time pricing data, farmers and even many buyers are unable to negotiate fairly. Prices change depending on who you ask, leading to distrust and inefficiency.
3. Fragmented and Informal Systems
Trading agro commodities in Nigeria is still largely informal. There’s no centralized marketplace or standard process — just word of mouth, scattered local markets, and manual negotiations. This makes scaling difficult and deters institutional buyers.
4. Inefficient Logistics and Delayed Payments
Even when deals happen, logistics can be a nightmare. Transport delays, unverified sellers, and unreliable payment systems lead to disputes and losses.
Our Why: Building TBT Agro
We built TBT Agro because we believe trade shouldn't be this hard.
TBT Agro is a digital B2B agro-commodity marketplace designed to connect verified sellers and buyers across Nigeria. Our mission is to simplify, digitize, and transform agro-trading — unlocking fair pricing, seamless logistics, and trusted transactions.
Here’s what we’re doing differently:
- Direct Access to verified buyers and sellers — cutting out exploitative middlemen
- Transparent Pricing powered by real-time market data
- Trade Matching to connect the right demand with the right supply
- Secure Transactions with monitored payment flow
- Logistics Support that ensures deliveries are tracked and managed professionally
Real Impact, Real Stories
Already, we’ve onboarded over 1,000 farmers and traders — with success stories coming from cashew traders in Oyo to maize aggregators in Kaduna. One seller secured a 30% price increase by bypassing traditional middlemen and selling directly on the platform. This is the kind of change we’re building every day.
What’s Next?
Our vision is bold — we want to become the number one agro-commodity trading platform in Africa. In the next 18 months, our goal is to connect over 20,000 farmers and traders, enabling smoother, more profitable trade for everyone involved.
Join Us
If you’re a buyer looking for trusted agro commodity sources, or a farmer wanting better market access — TBT Agro was built for you.
🌐 Visit: agro.tbt.com.ng
📩 For partnerships or inquiries: hello@tbt.com
Let’s change the way Nigeria trades — together.