U&I Palm Enterprises, a subsidiary of U&I Integrated Resources Limited, is one of Nigeria’s foremost palm oil processing and packaging companies. With production plants located in Southern Nigeria, the company has expanded its reach, supplying refined palm oil products within and outside Nigeria. Its flagship product, Ultimate Palm Oil, described more aptly as the indispensable companion of every good cook, is enjoyed in homes across Nigeria and other African and European countries.
U&I Palm Enterprises was established in 2013 with grants from the Youth Enterprise With Innovation in Nigeria YouWIN! Programme of the Federal Government of Nigeria to meet the soaring demand for high-quality palm products for both domestic consumption and industrial use. Since its establishment, the company has tremendously expanded Nigerians’ access to nutritious and health-friendly cooking oil. The introduction of the sachet palm oil (the first of its kind in Nigeria), for example, has made this high-quality cooking oil affordable for all Nigerians irrespective of economic class.
Apart from the YouWIN grant, U&I Palm Enterprises has also enjoyed grants from the Tony Elumelu Foundation’s Entrepreneurship Programme (TEEP), the Diamond Bank Building Entrepreneurs Today Season 6 (BET6) as well as the World Bank through its Growth and Employment (GEM) Business Innovation Growth (BIG) Portal Programme.
The management team of the company is led by Imaobong Ekanem who is the MD/CEO and founder. Having witnessed the unhealthy practices in the palm oil processing industry, some of which include: addition of dangerous chemicals to improve the colouration of the oil; deliberate dilution of palm oil to increase the volume and maximize profit as well as over-fermentation of the palm fruits to enhance the volume of oil extracted, even though this increases the cholesterol content, Imaobong decided to establish a company that would introduce cutting-edge technological innovation into the palm oil production and packaging process to enhance quality, taste, availability and affordability of the product.
U&I Palm Enterprises is headquartered in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria, with distribution channels spread across Nigeria and some African countries.