Bryan Acheampong
MINISTRY Of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) has said it has made ready about 4.5 million day-old chicks produced locally as well as vaccines and starter pack feed for farmers to feed Ghanaians during the Christmas season.
Sector Minister, Bryan Acheampong, who announced this said with Ghana consuming about 324,000 metric tons of chicken while producing a meagre 15,000 metric tons, the move would allow the country produce about 23,000 metric tons of chicken by the end of 2023 with a goal of increasing production in the ensuing year.
The government, he added, would next year, provide vaccines, starter pack feed and 18 million day-old chicks to support local poultry farmers nationwide.
This, he indicated, would move Ghana to about 35,000 metric tons of production.
“So if you look at our five-year food security plan, we are moving poultry from 15,000 metric tons to 23,000 metric tons, to 75,000 metric tons, to 150,000 metric tons, to 275,000 and then to 344,000 by the end of 2028”, he stated.
The minster made this announcement at the ministry’s enclave in Accra during a visit by the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, who inspected some of the products and services being exhibited as part of activities marking this year’s farmers’ week celebration.
Onion and Tomato Importation
Mr. Acheampong also indicated that plans were far advanced to curb the importation of some vegetables, notably onions and tomatoes.
According to the minister, even though the plan was part of the ministry’s 5-year food security and resilience plan, the case of onions and tomatoes are targeted at being addressed within two to three years especially as Ghana produces only 36% of tomatoes and 29% of onions consumed locally.
“Even though we have a five year plan for tomatoes, which we are producing 36% of what we consume and onion about 29%, it is also very, very annoying that we, as Ghanaians, have to import tomatoes and onions from half desert soils. And so we want to eliminate that embarrassment within two to three years even though the plan, as we have documented, is five years. We want to make sure that within three years we are out of our tomato and onion embarrassment”, he iterated.
Intentional Interventions
The minister also explained that intentional interventions by government for farmers in the Northern Region has led to the massive drop in prices of maize, soya and other food items.
“We were intentional about providing the necessary support to farmers in the Northern Region in their planting season. And today, the five northern regions have a bumper harvest of maize, rice and soya in abundance. This has caused the price of maize to drop from ¢350 at the same time last year to today, between ¢148 to ¢160 or averagely ¢150. That is how steep the price has dropped,” he disclosed.
BY Nii Adjei Mensahfio