Mr Joseph Boahen Aidoo, the Chief Executive Officer of Ghana COCOBOD, has advised cocoa farmers to embrace the practice of pruning to increase yields.
According to him, pruning enhances the penetration of sunlight through to the ground and proper ventilation to prevent diseases and moss that appear in the farms because of lack of the sunlight. The COCOBOD CEO also urged the farmers to desist from the applications of weedicides on their Cocoa and other crops like cassava and plantains to avoid the negative effects on the crops and the land.
Mr. Boahen Aidoo gave the advice at an appraisal event organized by the COCOBOD at Nyinahin, the district capital of AtwimaMponua, where he and the officers met with farmers from the AtwimaNwabiagya South and Mponua to sensitise them on best farming methods and practices to enhance productivity through increased yields to cater for themselves and families from their labour.
He reminded the farmers that they could start with any small piece of land they can effectively work on rather than ploughing vast lands that could not be cared and thus render them a waste.
The CEO indicated that, Cocoa should be planted at 10 feet intervals to enable them yield the expected beans during Cocoa season and advised against allowing any other plant or crops like oranges in the Cocoa farms because they pose a threat or attract infectious diseases in the farm.
According to him, if the Cocoa farm is properly pruned, one plant or a tree could yield about a 1,000 to 3000 flowers or pods of Cocoa in a season.
Mr. Boahen Aidoo disclosed that, the insecticides for the mass spraying exercise are fully funded by the government of Ghana to ensure that every Cocoa farm in the country is sprayed for which about 60,000 people were trained initially for the exercise.
He said the farmers pension scheme is in place and that, one contributes to it annually within every Cocoa season for the government to top up and that a contributor is qualify to receive payment after contributing for five years and at 60 years.
Mr. Boahen Aidoo advised the farmers and Ghanaians to consume more Cocoa products explaining that it reduces blood pressure and controls heart problems as well as serving as a boost to performance of young men and women.
Nana Kwasi Frimpong, the AtwimaMponua district best Farmer, also pleaded with the COCOBOD to effectively revive the mass spraying exercise of their Cocoa farms.
Mr. Isaac Marfo, the District Chief Executive for AtwimaMponua also pleaded with COCOBOD to continue the construction of the Cocoa roads in the Cocoa growing areas to enable residents, especially pregnant women to have easy access to healthcare facilities in those areas.
He disclosed that, making the roads accessible could help the farmers transport their produce to the Market centers to improve on their livelihoods.
