Agege Bread, is a sweet,
yeast
Yeasts are eukaryotic, single-celled microorganisms classified as members of the fungus kingdom (biology), kingdom. The first yeast originated hundreds of millions of years ago, and at least 1,500 species are currently recognized. They are est ...
ed white wheat bread originally from
Agege
Agege is a large city and local government area in the Ikeja Division of Lagos State, Nigeria. Until 1927, Agege was the capital of Ikeja Division.
Etymology
Agege is an ancient Awori city of Otta dynasty founded by Aige. It was initia ...
in
Lagos State
Lagos State (, ) is a States of Nigeria, state in South West, Nigeria. Of the 36 States of Nigeria, Nigerian states, Lagos is the second List of Nigerian states by population, most populous state but the List of Nigerian states by area, smallest ...
,
Nigeria
Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...
. Agege bread is commonly baked in lidded rectangular metal pans, similar to a
Pullman loaf
The Pullman loaf, sometimes called the " sandwich loaf" or "pan bread", is a rectangular loaf of white bread baked in a long, narrow, lidded pan. The French term for this style of loaf is , or, less commonly, .
European breadmakers began using ...
. Agege bread spread in popularity from Agege to other parts of the country, where it is commonly sold by street vendors and in markets.
History
In 1913, Amos Stanley Wynter Shackleford immigrated from Jamaica to Lagos. Settling in
Ebute Metta
Ebute Metta is a neighbourhood of Lagos Mainland, Lagos, in Lagos State, Nigeria.
History
Ebute Metta is known for the production and sale of local food and cloths. It is a very old part of Lagos State, many of its houses were built during th ...
while working and after leaving his job, in 1921, at the
Nigerian Railway Corporation
Nigerian Railway Corporation (commonly abbreviated as NRC) is the state-owned enterprise with exclusive rights to operate railways in Nigeria.
History
The Nigerian Railway Corporation traces its history to the year 1898, when the first railr ...
, his bread-making skills quickly gained attention. By 1920, Shackleford opened a bakery in Ebute-Meta, where his bread became popular and was dubbed "Shackleford Bread." Its popularity grew rapidly, with vans and buses transporting large quantities from Ebute-Meta to meet demand beyond. Despite Shackleford's early success, his bakery shut down after facing difficulties following Nigeria's independence in 1960. With its closure, new local bakers soon emerged, including Alhaji Ayokunnu, who revived the tradition using dough machines and Shackleford's methods, establishing his own bakery in Agege.
Ayokunnu branded his product "Agege Bread", based on the location of his bakery, and by preserving its original taste and feel, he gave the consumers a product they were already familiar with. Agege Bread remains a legacy of Ayokunnu's rebrand.
See also
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List of African dishes
Africa is the second-largest continent on Earth, and is home to hundreds of different cultural and ethnic groups. This diversity is reflected in the many local culinary traditions in choice of ingredients, style of preparation, and cooking techn ...
*
Nigerian cuisine
Nigerian cuisine consists of dishes or food items from the hundreds of Native African ethnic groups that comprises Nigeria. Like other West African cuisines, it uses spices and herbs with palm oil or groundnut oil to create deeply flavored sa ...
References
External links
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Nigerian cuisine
Breads
Street food
{{Nigeria-cuisine-stub