Starting a commercial farming business in Cameroon is very lucrative and easy. Lucrative in the sense that there is a readily available market. Easy because there is enough fertile land that is underutilized. Last week, I talked about investment opportunities in sorghum, maize and cassava production. I will share with you today ideas on how to start a farming business in Cameroon.

Agriculture has been very vital in the economy of Cameroon. If you didn’t know, it employs about half the work force of the country. We have agro-industrial plantations like the Cameroon Development Corporation, CDC, which is the second employer in the country after the government. Statistics also show that there are more then 2 million small scale family farms.

Commercial agriculture is no longer export-oriented only

However, many think commercial agriculture is supposed to be export-oriented. When you talk commercial agriculture in Cameroon, many think of cocoa, coffee, banana, rubber, and so on which all target the export market. However, it is not the case today because we find crops like maize, sorghum, cassava that were food crops turn into cash crops.

Another strange phenomenon is that there is a readily available market locally as well. Not a market for subsistence consumption, but for agro-industrial consumption. This means, if you can come up with a good business plan, feasibility studies and a proper market research, then you will be in business. This will help ease things out when you have to market your produce.

The growth in food processing sector

The food processing industry has seen a great increase lately and will continue to grow. A lot of made-in-Cameroon products from local farm produces can be found in the market and counters of supermarkets. The increasing rate of food processing business and the growing demand from local consumers for made-in-Cameroon products means your farm business will succeed.

So if you have been planning to start a farming business in Cameroon, do not be afraid. Engaging in commercial farming will help you to maximize resources. You can decide to go in for mix farming that includes crop production as well as keeping livestock (animals, poultry or fish farming). Let’s checkout some of the things you will need to start a commercial farming business in Cameroon.

What you need to start a farming business in Cameroon

1. Business plan

A business plan is usually regarded as a road map for your business. Having a business plan put in place will help you in easily getting out with you farming business. The business plan will help you keep in mind the remaining other points. You need to evaluate your strength, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.

2. Farm location

You need to look for a location that will be suitable for the type of product you want to produce. You should also take into consideration the space limitations. If you are going in for say maize or sorghum production, then you have to think of the climate also.

3. Equipment, input or materials

You will need to budget for equipment, inputs, land and materials needed for you to start a farm. The basic or must have is land which you can either buy or rent. You can find farming land almost every where in Cameroon depending on what you want to produce and where you want to produce.

4. Human resources and training

We are talking here about a commercial farming business so having a trained hand is very necessary. You need to have at least a trained agro-technician if you are going in for crop production or a livestock expert if you are into animal husbandry.

5. Knowledge of the market

As earlier said, carrying out a thorough marketing research is very necessary when you want to start a farming business in Cameroon. Your market position is very important, hence you have to be very careful with this point. You need to make sure what you want to do

• is practical and is needed or will fill a need,
• you know very well the competition,
• the advantages your business will have over existing farm businesses or
• if your services will be better than that of competition and
• can you actually make your customer see the need for your product (create demand)

6. Production plan

A business plan needs to have a production plan where you explain the day-to-day operations of the business. You have to put in place plans on how the farm operates and what it is going to produce for the market. These includes things like land, equipment, buildings, inputs, processes as well as laws and regulations that governs the sector.

To start a business, you need a business plan whether it is just on a piece of paper or what some call a formal business plan. However, in the case of a commercial farming business, you will need to have a formal business plan with details.

You may want to go into this business but writing a business plan is your limit. You don’t have to bother about this because you can get in touch with us and in less than no time, you will have a concise business plan that will help you start a farming business in Cameroon.

That’s not all, we also help

• register or incorporate your business – going commercial means you need to register your business
• to coach and train you on how to manage your farm business
• expose your business to the public or potential customers to know you by designing a content-rich responsive website
• help build your reputation by providing you with high quality search engine optimized content and social media marketing services

It is now left for you to decide on getting in touch with us below in other to start, run and grow your business in Cameroon.

You can also subscribe on our blog in order to be the first to be informed on latest in doing business in Cameroon. Don’t hesitate to drop a comment below if you need an answer to a question or join our WhatsApp group Doing Business in Cameroon or OpenHub Digital Official’s channel on Telegram.