Create link between agric and industry -MoFA
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The Ministry for Food and Agriculture (MOFA) has stated that there is a critical need for Ghana to establish a strong relationship between agriculture and industry to add value to products of farmers.
Addressing a news conference to announce the 28th Farmers Day celebration slated for Friday, the sector Minister, Kwesi Ahwoi said it is important for food produced by farmers to have a longer life span on the market.
He explained: “If other manufacturers could look at how to extend the shelf life of these products, just as you walk into a shop and you can buy biscuit and the biscuit can stay for three to four months on the shelf, same way we need to find ways and means of adding value to our basic raw material. That is why we keep emphasizing the need to establish a relationship between agriculture and industry.”
According to him, if this is not done, “the raw material figures we throw out will mean nothing unless we can prolong the life span of the food that we produce.”
Mr. Ahwoi noted that factories in Ghana do come up with problems every now and then.
He said: “Ayensu itself right from its inception had problems of raw materials supply and the relationship between the farmers, price and the off-taker which is the factory. Hannah Tetteh [Minister for Trade and Industry] has been able to re-activate the factory; we’ve been able to sit down with the farmers and organized them into a cooperative and we have worked out a pricing relationship.”
“Every year, we give a new price to cocoa and the pricing committee includes farmers, COCOBOD and other interested parties. They sit down together and they agree on the price. Once the price is fixed, then every cocoa farmer sells his cocoa for that price,” he added.
Mr. Ahwoi also mentioned that “the Buffer Stock Company has started doing something similar in the three target products of rice, maize and soya bean.” This year’s Famers Day will be held at Abokobi in the Ga East Municipality of the Greater Accra Region. Credit: Citifmonline
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HON MINISTER-THE LINK BETWEEN AGRICULTURE AND INDUSTRY HAVE TO BE PLACED ON NEW DEMANDS ON THOSE EDUCATED AND TRAINED IN FOOD PRODUCTION AND AGRICULTURE IN TERMS OF PRACTICAL INNOVATIVE KNOWLEDGE SKILLS AND TECHNICAL KNOW-HOW EDUCATOION AND TRAINING.
FOOD SECURITY IMPLIIES, PROCESSING,PACKAGING, STORAGE AND MARKETING TO THE POINT OF SALE:
THIS MEANS THOSE INVOLVED IN THE SECTOR NEED TO HAVE TECHNICAL, PRACTICAL. MANAGERIAL AND MARKETING SKILLS TO ENABLE THEM TO BE RESPONSIBLE AND EFFICIENT FOOD PROCESSORS AND EFFECTIVE CUSTODIANS OF OUR FARM LANDS IN THE COUNTRY..
WHY SHOULD THE FEW FOOD PROCESSING PLANTS IN THE COUNTRY HAVE TO CONFRONT YOUR MINISTRY WITH EVERYDAY PROBLEMS.
THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG:
HON. MINISTER. THIS MEANS THOSE IN CHARGE OF THE FOOD PROCESSING PLANTS, HAVE NOT BEEN INTRODUCED TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF PRODUCT LINES THAT ARE DESIGNED FOR THE FOOD INDUSTRY TO MEET THE NEEDS OF THE FOOD INDUSTRY.:
WE CAN ONLY LIVE TO EXPECTATION IF; THE AGRICULTURAL FACULTIES AND INSTITUTES IN THE COUNTRY ARE DEVELOPED TO ENABLE THE STUDENTS TO GET INDUSTRY STANDARD TRAINING WITH THE STATE -OF-THE ART EQUIPMENT AND TECHNOLOGY.
FOOD PRODUCTION AND PROCESSING CAN ONLY BE BETTER IF, AGRICULTURAL STUDENTS COMBINE PRACTICAL SKILLS WITH SOUND THEORETICAL KNOWLEDGE.
THEREFORE BOLD NEW IDEAS ARE CALLED FOR TO CHANGE THE OLD SYSTEM OF AGRICULTURE EDUCATION AND TRAINING IN THE COUNTRY:
THE WORLD HAS CHANGED SINCE 1949 AND WE NEED TO CHANGE TOO IN ORDER TO HAVE A BETTER AND DIFFERENT FUTURE FOR OUR NATION, GHANA.
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