Increasing certified organic cocoa production

One of the most effective ways of increasing certified organic cocoa production in Ghana, is to encourage fairtrade partnerships between Ghanaians, and foreign companies engaged in certified fairtrade organic cocoa production elsewhere in the world.

If such fairtrade joint-venture partnerships between Ghanaians and foreign investors, are automatically issued with permits to buy and export certified organic cocoa beans - produced by farmer groups they work with to convert to certified organic cocoa production - that will be the perfect incentive to attract more overseas fairtrade companies experienced in organic certified cocoa production elsewhere, to invest in joint-venture partnerships to produce certified cocoa for export with Ghanaians.

Those joint-venture partnerships to produce certified fairtrade organic cocoa in Ghana, will grow that niche quickly - to make Ghana a global power in certified fairtrade organic cocoa production.

The present ministerial team at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, ought to take a keen interest in the effort to increase certified fairtrade organic cocoa production in Ghana.

For their information, it was the personal intervention by one of their predecessors in office, the late Hon. Baah-Wiredu, who after reading an article of mine, subsequently ensured that a permit to buy and export cocoa beans was issued by the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) to a Ghanaian resident in Switzerland, Mr. Yayra Glover, which made it possible for him to team up with Pakka AG and Max Felchlin AG - both Swiss organic chocolate manufacturers - and guaranteed the success of the Yayra Glover Project in the Suhum, Craboar Coaltar District: in producing certified organic fairtrade cocoa for export to Switzerland.

The current ministerial team at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, ought to aim to replicate such fairtrade partnerships to produce certified cocoa for export, many times over, during their administration's tenure - a worthy legacy for them to aim to leave as an achievement for President Mahama's administration.

In the long-term, it makes perfect sense for Ghana to aim to become the world's leading producer of certified organic cocoa beans - to secure the future of cocoa production in Ghana.

The surest way to achieve that goal, is for the COCOBOD to encourage more fairtrade joint- venture partnerships of the Yayra Glover Project type.

That will definitely make Ghana the world's leading producer of high quality cocoa beans - by definition certified fairtrade organic cocoa beans - for which global demand will always outstrip supply and command a premium.

Luckily, the present chief executive of the COCOBOD, Mr. Tony Fofie, and his deputy, Dr. Yaw-Adu Ampomah, are both committed to and supportive of an increase in the production of certified organic cocoa beans in Ghana.

The future in the global market for cocoa beans, definitely lies with the nations that switch to producing certified organic cocoa beans. A time will come when the major buyers of cocoa beans will purchase only certified organic cocoa beans.

That is why Ghana must aim to become the source of certified organic cocoa beans for major buyers in Japan, Germany, Scandinavia, the UK, Europe, the United States of America, Canada, Singapore, China and elsewhere. And it is joint-venture partnerships to produce certified organic cocoa that will secure the future of Ghana's cocoa industry. A word to the wise...

Email: peakofi.thompson@gmail.com.