Cashew, which is likely one of the tree crops promoted below the Plantation for Export and Rural Growth (PERD) programme, is essentially produced within the Bono area.
It’s a well-known proven fact that the area is likely one of the largest producers of the commodity within the nation, as it’s produced in business portions.
The crop was launched to Ghana about 35 years in the past, the Bono area, which has a complete space of 11,107 sq. kilometres, comprising 5% of Ghana’s territorial land, grew to become the key producer of the commodity.
Statistics obtainable from the Bono Regional Division of the Ministry of Meals and Agriculture (MoFA) point out that the area produced over 48% of the entire annual manufacturing of 170,000 metric tons (MT) of cashew nuts. gross in 2021.
Following the introduction of the PRDE, the area plans to extend its present manufacturing to 130,000 MT per 12 months over the following 4 years.
The area, with 12 municipal and district administrative areas, has about seven of its districts focusing extra on the cultivation of the commodity.
Cashew nut wedges
The main cashew producers within the area are Jaman North District, Jaman South Municipality, Tain District and Banda District.
The others are Wenchi Municipality, Berekum Municipality, West Berekum District and West Sunyani Municipality.
Though the remainder of the neighborhoods, specifically; Sunyani Municipality, Dormaa Municipality, Dormaa West District and Dormaa East District additionally produce the product, they don’t seem to be in large-scale manufacturing.
Throughout this 12 months’s excessive season, the commodity is in abundance in the primary producing districts, particularly the southern municipality of Jaman and the northern district of Jaman.
When the Day by day Graphic visited Sampa and Drobo in Jaman North District and Jaman South Municipality, respectively, a number of lengthy vehicles had been loading and carrying a number of luggage of uncooked cashew nuts from the totally different communities.
It’s common to see dried uncooked cashew nuts in all obtainable open areas together with the shoulders of roads in each group in Jaman North District and Jaman South Municipality.
PERD program
Bono Regional Director of Agriculture, Denis Abugri Amenga, instructed the Day by day Graphic that because the begin of PERD in 2018, greater than 46,000 hectares of recent cashew plantations have been established within the area.
Mr. Amenga mentioned the enclaves of Wenchi, Tain, Berekum and Jaman had been the primary manufacturing areas, giving the area the sting over different areas.
He mentioned that below this system, 1000’s of farmers within the area obtained improved cashew seedlings freed from cost and had been supported by Agricultural Extension Officers (AEOs) to undertake greatest agricultural practices as a way to enhance efficiency.
Mr. Amenga mentioned farmers had additionally allowed pruning of their farms, which was one of many foremost methods to extend manufacturing.
Nonetheless, he lamented that almost 88,000 tons of cashew apple, which could possibly be made into juice and several other different recipes, had been wasted.
Mr. Amenga due to this fact known as on the Municipal and District Assemblies (MDAs) and personal traders to spend money on the processing of cashew fruits into juice.
He mentioned including worth to uncooked cashew nuts and apples (fruits) by means of processing would assist create extra jobs, improve earnings and cut back poverty to positively affect welfare. financial and social being of the nation.
Pricing
Through the years, cashew farmers and merchants within the area have continued to bemoan low farm gate costs and another advertising points.
In 2019, some farmers suspended the sale of uncooked cashew nuts because of the drastic drop within the producer worth of the commodity.
Some pissed off farmers additionally stopped choosing uncooked cashew nuts from their farms as a result of the processing price of a bag of nuts was larger than the worth of a bag of nuts.
In the meantime, some farmers, who don’t have services to retailer nuts or who want money for numerous causes, proceed to promote them at low costs.
This 12 months, the federal government has set the minimal worth of the product at GH8.50 per kilogram.
Nonetheless, the federal government’s announcement was met with combined reactions from cashew growers and merchants within the area.
Whereas a part of them expressed pleasure concerning the award and praised the federal government for the initiative, one other a part of the farmers argued that the quantity was not sufficient and will have been pushed to 10 GH per kilogram.
A 42-year-old farmer in Sampa, Victor Ankamah, mentioned the federal government’s choice to repair the cashew nut worth confirmed its dedication to farmers.
He mentioned it helped stop consumers from deceptive farmers, saying the quantity was within the pursuits of trade gamers.
Nonetheless, a 33-year-old farmer, Salia Ibrahim, instructed the Day by day Graphic that he was sad as the associated fee concerned in choosing uncooked cashew nuts was larger than what he bought from promoting cashews. the merchandise.
He defined that he both needed to share the picked uncooked nuts with the pickers by dividing them into three, the place he took two of the three, or pay 50 GH to every individual per day.
Mr. Ibrahim mentioned that given the excessive price of chemical compounds and different agricultural bills he incurs in working his farm, the producer worth per kilogram was woefully insufficient.
He due to this fact known as on the federal government to contemplate elevating the worth of the commodity to make the trade profitable.
Dishonest
Mr. Ibrahim defined that though the federal government mounted the worth of cashew nuts, consumers within the space had been nonetheless dishonest farmers, saying: Some consumers preserve dishonest us by giving lower than GH 8.50.
Jaman North District (DCE) Chief Government Solomon Owusu, who additionally confirmed the dishonest subject to the Day by day Graphic, mentioned the meeting heard that some consumers within the space had been dishonest farmers.
He mentioned that as a way to stop the consumers from deceiving the farmers, the meeting had inaugurated a process pressure to go to the communities to confirm the actions of the consumers, to make sure that the farmers weren’t deceived.
Mr Owusu mentioned the duty pressure was made up of officers from the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), the Ghana Police Service (GPS) and the Ghana Income Authority (GRA) and the Division of Income Providers. data (ISD).
He mentioned it was unlawful for consumers to deceive farmers or abuse the worth set by the Tree Crop Growth Authority (TCDA), explaining that cashew manufacturing was the spine of mixing and wouldn’t enable consumers to deceive farmers.
Earnings
Mr. Owusu mentioned cashew was a serious supply of earnings era for Assemblies, saying, “Meeting earnings at all times will increase considerably throughout cashew season.
He mentioned the federal government has additionally demonstrated its dedication to the cashew trade and talked about the institution of the TCDA, which regulated the actions of tree crops together with cashew.
He mentioned the institution of the authority has helped to strengthen the cashew sector within the area and within the nation as a complete.
Unhealthy roads, smuggling
Mr. Owusu, nevertheless, expressed concern over the poor nature of the roads within the space, explaining that the poor situation of the roads hampered cashew commerce and different socio-economic actions.
He mentioned the meeting has began transforming some feeder roads within the area to facilitate the transport of meals and money crops, particularly cashew nuts from the farms to the assorted storage services.
Mr. Owusu mentioned that because the district shares its border with Cote d’Ivoire, the meeting has tightened safety within the space to stop smuggling of cashew nuts in or out of the district.
“Sadly, there are a number of unapproved routes that a few of these smugglers might take, however now we have stepped up safety to manage smuggling throughout the border,” Owusu mentioned.
Reply
Responding to the problem of dishonest, a cashew purchaser, Isaac Kofi Asamoah, defined that consumers typically purchase the product beneath GH8.50 because of the poor high quality of the nuts.
He defined that the standard of some farmers’ nuts was compromised, stating that some farmers typically didn’t correctly dry their nuts earlier than promoting them.
Mr Asamoah mentioned that when there’s a certain quantity of moisture within the nuts, consumers should purchase it beneath worth in order to not undergo losses after drying them correctly.
He known as on farmers to make sure their nuts had been properly dried to keep away from controversy.
