08/21/2026
FRIDAY SPOTLIGHT | MEET OYENIYI ADEWALE SUNDAY
What happens when you turn the gap between farmers and consumers into a career dedicated to building stronger food systems?
Meet Oyeniyi Adewale Sunday, a Fresh Food Sourcing Manager at Foodco Nigeria Limited, whose journey in the food industry has been driven by one powerful goal to create systems that connect farmers directly to markets while reducing food waste.
When he started his career in 2006 as a sales manager in a bakery operations, he saw the gap between farmers and consumers as farmers struggled to sell at fair prices and consumers dealt with wastes because of poor quality. This made Oyeniyi to move his career from procurement to operations in fresh food sourcing and retail which helped him gain valuable experience across the food supply chain.
Today, he manages fresh food procurement from farm sourcing to in-store sales, kitchen production and customer delivery. His work includes sourcing directly from farmers, managing fresh meat operations, and leading the “Grow for Us” Project, which supports smallholder farmers in producing consistently for the market.
Throughout the years Oyeniyi has made great achievements such as building a strong farmer network across Nigeria, achieving a 95% procurement success rate, and helping scale initiatives such as the Foodco Village Market and Grow for Us projects. Most importantly, he has also successfully managed multi-category fresh food operations across retail and B2B in 2 major companies.
Throughout his career he has experienced challenges from post-harvest losses and inconsistent supply to logistics and quality challenges. Oyeniyi learned that “systems + relationships = sustainable food supply.”
His advice to aspiring food professionals and entrepreneurs is simple:
💡 Know your farmer and your market cycle.
📊 Let data drive your decisions.
✅ Prioritise quality and consistency.
📈 Start small, standardise, then scale.
🤝 Invest in your people.
His vision is even bigger, because he aims at reducing fresh produce waste, empowering thousands of smallholder farmers with reliable markets, and making Nigerian fresh and local foods export-ready.
“Nigeria’s food future depends on young people willing to work from farm to shelf." said Oyeniyi.
At GFBN, we believe that stories like Oyeniyi’s remind us that transforming food systems requires more than great ideas, it requires knowledge, collaboration, strong supply chains and people willing to solve real problems.
Are you a food entrepreneur, professional or industry expert with a story worth sharing? We want to hear from you! 🌍
Send us a Direct Message on WhatsApp+265 882 494 494 and share your Food industry story with GFBN and the World.
