Agriculture bazaar underway

Accra, Dec 22, GNA - A three-day agriculture food bazaar on Monday opened at the forecourt of the Greater Accra Regional Agriculture Directorate along the 28 February Road where food items including Ghana rice, cooking oil, vegetables, fruits and livestock and meat were on sale at affordable prices.

The agriculture bazaar, the third in edition, is being organised under the auspices of the Greater Accra Regional Agricultural Directorate in collaboration with the Tema Municipal Poultry and Livestock Farmers Association and farmers in the Greater Accra Region. At the bazaar grounds, live chicken sells at between 40,000 cedis and 80,000 cedis, while a live turkey weighing nine kilos cost 350,000 cedis.

Fifty kilograms made-in-Ghana rice sells at 260,000 cedis while a 25kg of the same product sells at 130,000 cedis. Five-kilogram bag sells at 25,000 cedis while two goes for 12,000 cedis.

Hundred of customers rushed for the live chicken and rice. Mr Clement Eledi, Deputy Minister of Food and Agriculture in-charge of Crops, said the bazaar reinforced Government's commitment to ensuring that consumers got good quality and nutritious food and protein products at affordable prices during the Christmas season and at all times. He, therefore, asked Ghanaians to patronise made-in-Ghana goods especially those on display at the bazaar to ensure that farmers remained in business.

Mr Eledi said the Ministry intended to extend the bazaar to other regional capitals as it progresses.

On the importation of poultry products into the country, Mr Eledi told the GNA that until the country was able to economically stand on its feet, "we might have to continue to accept the importation of such products to supplement the local productions."

Mr Ellis Aferi, Chairman of the Tema Municipal Poultry and Livestock Farmers Association, appealed to the Chiefs in the Municipality to stop harassing them over the use of farmlands so that they could have their peace to produce more.

He alleged that some chiefs and their hired agents in the Municipality were vandalising lands and property to cause confusion in the wake of court ruling against them.

He said the matter needed to be resolved urgently to make farming a more peaceful and profitable venture for Tema farmers.

Mr Aferi commended the Government for its efforts at promoting agriculture and for supporting the bazaar, which sought to bring farmers, and consumers to a common platform where they could buy made-in-Ghana produce at affordable prices.