No fewer than 74 Dairy Farmers in Plateau state has accused the Integrated Dairies Limited (IDL) makers of Farm Fresh products of scamming them of N441.8 million naira smallholders dairy project leaving them in total economic disarray.

The spokesperson of the WUNATO Dairy Farmers and Multi-purpose Cooperative Society Vwang, Mr. Bulus Davou during a press conference held at the Vwang Town Hall Vom in Jos South local government area of Plateau state accused the implementors of the Federal Government dairy intervention project of "deceit and mismanagement of N441,874,406.24" Agric Business, Small and Medium Enterprise Investment Scheme (AGMEIS) loan.

According to Davou, "Sometimes in April 2021,Integrated Dairies Limited (IDL) convened a stakeholders meeting of Vwang District through the District Head, His Royal Highness Da Gyang G. Balak with the Dagwom Turu, Dawom Chugwi, Dagwom Fwil, all Vwang District recognized associations and all members of the 4 villages that make up Vwang District in attendance. 

"Also in attendance at the meeting was a representative of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) wherein the management of IDL (Integrated Dairies Limited, Vom) presented 2 motor bikes to the community’s Vigilante to keep surveillance at IDL farm and the host community as their corporate social responsibility.  

"In furtherance of IDL’s corporate social responsibility, a representative of the CBN and the management of IDL announced a small stakeholders’ dairy development project wherein the Federal Government of Nigeria and IDL shall build pens; provide financial support for the care, feeding, health, insurance and maintenance of the diary animals (cows); provide the cows to the farmers while the farmers of WUNATO shall provide the lands and care for the diary animals and IDL shall purchase the dairy products from the WUNATO farmers to boost its production and from same make refunds to the Federal Government (loan repayment). 
"This was later found to be misleading and that the said small stakeholders’ diary development project was actually a Federal Government Diary intervention project which is actually refundable and not merely the corporate social intervention of IDL.

"The project as explained further at the meeting by IDL was in collaboration with the Federal Government of Nigeria through CBN to boost milk production. It was the explanation that IDL shall serve as off takers of the products from the WUNATO dairy farmers. Finally, at the meeting IDL promised to make the enrollment forms available to those who might want to engage in the dairy farming project." He explained 

The aggrieved farmers said to kick start the project, more than 500 persons picked up forms for the project and out of the number, only 74 persons were selected for the pilot phase of the project.

"The WUNATO farmers thereafter discovered that the project was sponsored by NIRSAL Microfinance Bank through the Federal Government of Nigeria as against the earlier information and presumptions based on the presentation by IDL and the CBN representative.

"On the 14/4/2022, all 74 WUNATO farmers were directed by IDL to open a personal saving account with an initial deposit of #2,000 with the NIRSAL Microfinance Bank, Jos branch who came to the palace of the Gwom Rwey (District Head) of Vwang for the exercise. Then, on the 21/5/2022 farmers received a strange alert telling the farmer that another account had been created different from the one open by the farmer with NIRSAL Microfinance Bank.  
"Upon careful investigation and findings about the subsequent account opened without the prior consent and agreement of the WUNATO Farmers, we discovered that the subsequent account was opened with the aid of IDL using date cloned and extracted from the one initially opened by and with the consent of the WUNATO farmers. 

"This cloned account was created without any prior notice, consent and agreement of the WUNATO farmers and the WUNATO farmers would not have access to this account nor have any transaction that has to do with the said cloned account, the IDL and its cronies have all the access and use of the proceeds of the cloned account. 

"Subsequently, we discovered that the cloned accounts were credited with the sum of #5,971,275.76 for each of the 74 WUNATO farmers with 4% interest deducted on disbursement as administrative and management fee leaving a balance of #5,732,420.72. Then on the 16/8/2022, an insurance premium was deducted leaving a balance of #5,600,668.18. 

"On the 17/8/2022, #5,584,652.18 was transferred to IDL (Integrated Dairies Limited) account making an aggregate total amount of #413,264,261.32 (Four Hundred and Thirteen Million, Two Hundred and Sixty Four Thousand, Two Hundred and Sixty One Naira Thirty Two Kobo) for all the 74 WUNATO dairy farmers without any notice to the WUNATO farmers leaving a balance of #16,016.28 in each of the 74 WUNATO farmers’ cloned account. 

"The first personal saving account with NIRSAL Microfinance Bank opened by the WUNATO farmers was left idle with no transactions going on except scheduled deductions of monthly charges and ATM card maintenance charges which are being deducted from the initial #2000 deposited by the WUNATO Farmers." The farmers noted
The spokesperson noted that with the total aggregate amount for the project in IDL’s account and possession, "all transactions, financial management, construction, procurement and general management of the entire project lays solely with IDL leaving the small holder WUNATO dairy farmers with role of merely workers hired to only look after these animals with a stipend of N10,000 at the end of the month and another #10,000 saved in the WUNATO farmers’ cooperative account that was open by the WUNATO farmers. 

"We must however state that the WUNATO Farmers were directed by IDL to open a current account with NIRSAL Microfinance Bank (0259737992 Wunato dairy and multipurpose cooperative Society) with signatories to same account been the WUNATO executive officials i.e., the Chairman, Treasurer and Financial Secretary; IDL fraudulently sneaked its project officer who is not a member of the WUNATO farmers into being a signatory to the said current account held with NIRSAL Microfinance Bank.

"Further to the above, an offer letter was giving to the farmers without any professional or learned guidance and counsel on its purpose and implication to the WUNATO farmers and farmers who were reluctant to acknowledge on same were threatened with sanctions from the project. IDL then told the farmers that everything shall be their responsibilities as long as they remain the farmers’ facilitator and guarantor." Davou stated 

The farmers alleged that their facilitator has gone into illegal withdrawals of their personal savings in accounts that has no link to the project crumbling every means of livelihoods of the farmers.

"With all these challenges faced by the WUNATO farmers on the areas of feeding, finances, health and death of some of the animals; as if that was not enough, on the 23/7/2025 barely 5 months of receiving these animals WUNATO farmers received the shock of their lives with their hard earned savings withdrawn through GSI from their other personal accounts held with other banks and which personal accounts have no link to the project. 
"The illicit withdrawals from the personal accounts upon inquiry were said to be for the purpose of servicing the loan in the project but which repayment is supposed to come from milk sales through IDL.

"These illicit withdrawals from the WUNATO farmers’ personal accounts have set the farmers into trauma and indebtedness; these animals were only given to farmers in February 2024 as against 2022 when disbursement of money were made which should have been given much more earlier but our facilitator (IDL) withheld these monies for their fraudulent intentions. The delay in delivering the cows as scheduled affected the delivery of the dairy products by the WUNATO farmers to IDL and subsequently the delay in making refunds.

The farmers disclosed that since the commencement of the project in 2021, about 70 – 80% of activities that dominated the implementation of project were "managing crisis ranging from crisis management meetings. No feeds to feed the animals, poor construction activities, fraudulent financial management and inability by IDL to disclosed what the project is all about this at some point make the farmers see the whole exercise as a "scam." Davou stated 

Amidst the weighty allegations levelled against the Integrated Dairy Limited makers of Farm Fresh by the Dairy Farmers in the estate. All efforts to ensure the authority clears itself of these issues proves abortive as the management declined to speak on camera or had the picture of it's staff taken while countering the allegations.