Farmers in Kassena-Nankana abandon pepper farms; rice wastes away in warehouses as prices plummet
The situation is not any different for rice farmers in the municipality as they are also grappling with similar challenges. Large quantities of produce from last year and the current harvest season remain unsold.
Farmers in the Kassena-Nankana Municipality of the Upper East Region are abandoning their pepper farms due to the lack of ready markets and rising production costs.
The farmers describe this year’s trading season as one of the worst in decades, citing extremely low prices that have made it nearly impossible to recover their investments.
The concerns were raised during the election of new executives of the Kassena-Nankana Municipal Chapter of the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG).
Speaking to Mike FM, a member of the association, Eric Ajdwokei, revealed that several farmers have been forced to desert their farms because they can no longer sustain operations.
According to him, the high cost of fertilizer, pesticides and labour sharply contrasts with the low prices offered by traders.
“There is no motivation to keep farming. Fertilizer and chemicals are expensive, and even the cost of labourer,” he said.
“Sometimes the market women price a basin of pepper at 80 cedis, meanwhile we pay labourers alone 60 cedis. So, at the end the farmer is gaining nothing,” he added.
This situation, according to the farmers, has left them heavily indebted and uncertain about returning to pepper cultivation next season.
The situation is not any different for rice farmers in the municipality as they are also grappling with similar challenges. Large quantities of produce from last year and the current harvest season remain unsold.
The farmers report that the price of paddy rice has plummeted from 1,200 cedis per bag last year to as low as 280 cedis this year, a drop they describe as devastating.
Richard Akoka, the newly elected Chairman of PFAG in the area, disclosed that he currently has more than 5,000 bags of paddy rice stored in warehouses while searching unsuccessfully for buyers, even at reduced prices.
“There is no market for our rice. Some of us who have warehouses are fortunate, but others have to keep their produce outside, with animals feeding on them,” he lamented.
“100 kilograms of rice this year is 250 cedis, yet you do not get anybody to buy.” He lamented.
Akoka described the year as extremely difficult for farmers across various sectors and called on the government to enforce its directive requiring public institutions to prioritise the purchase of locally produced food.
“This year, almost all types of farmers either rice, tomato, or vegetable, are frustrated,” he stated.
The farmers are appealing for urgent government intervention, stating that previous engagements with authorities in the agriculture sector have failed to produce tangible results.
Mike 105.3FM | Navrongo | Alexander Bombande
