Soil management critical to growth of cocoa sector - COCOBOD CEO

CocoaSoils present farmers manual to COCOBOD

Guide on soil management important to us, COCOBOD CEO

Soil is the bedrock for cocoa production, Joseph Aidoo

The Chief Executive Officer of Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), Joseph Boahen Aidoo, has indicated that the type of soil farmers use for farming is critical to the growth of the cocoa industry.

He explained that soil is the bedrock for any production, hence, the need for farmers to be on the lookout for good soil(s) to help yield more results.

Mr Joseph Boahen Aidoo's comments come after the CocoaSoils presented a handbook to COCOBOD to aid farmers on soil fertility and how to increase cocoa production.

He was optimistic the handbook will guide farmers to continue to produce without any hindrance.

Speaking at the ceremony in Accra on Thursday, April 28, 2022, the COCOBOD CEO said, "For us in cocoa, this is very important because soils actually constitute the bedrock to whatever we do… The soils actually store organic carbons more than even putting the whole world forests together so soils are very crucial in our daily life and those in cocoa production. For years, our farmers are used to slash and burn and with that practice, we all know the effects; soil depletion and degradation of the land and environment."

"So over the years, we’ve been experiencing yields decline which also has its own ramification. We see this project to be very dear to cocoa industry because, it is going to help us understand the appropriate and proper ways of managing our soils to the best of the sector and also bring about the sustainability of the industry," he added.

Speaking in the same vein, Project Coordinator of CocoaSoils Programme, Dr Richard Asare, noted that the handbook provides scientific knowledge for farmer training.

"The manual handbook entitled 'Managing soils for increased productivity and decreased deforestation in cocoa: A training manual for field officers' which are being presented to the management of the Ghana Cocoa Board today has three sections with technical and practical contents namely; introduction to increasing cocoa productivity and deforestation, good agricultural practices to increase productivity and soil fertility management," he stated.

He furthered that this will deepen understanding of the cocoa tree’s nutritional requirements as well as address the problem of expansion of cocoa farmlands into forested areas.