The case For Orange Farmers In Ghana
William Awuku
Executive Vice President at Africa Entrepreneurship & Investment Advisors Limited
Orange farmers in the Eastern, Central and Ashanti Regions of Ghana have a problem of low prices for their produce and even worse in years of good harvest.
Income has been low because while incomes are relatively fixed, cost vary according to activity to the detriment of farmers. It is estimated that in the last 6 years up to 25% of farms older than 10 years have been cut down for the land to be put to alternative use.
Our checks with farmers for reasons they are cutting down the orange trees is low incomes and the recent diseases that makes oranges develop some black spots and result in premature dropping of fruits
When orange processors were asked why they pay farmers only for the juice but not the seed, the pulp and the peels, they replied they do not process these and do not therefore factor them in pricing the product.
Let us be serious, the farmers are being paid less than 30% of the value of a fruit, meaning farmers could earn at least double what they are paid now while processors could also double their profits. So what are we wasting?
1. The peels are used for mosquito coils and for other uses and the value is almost the same as the fruit.
2. The pulp is used for orange juice and has almost the same value as the juice.
3. The seeds are used in the pharmaceutical industry and has value of about 60% of the juice.
What can we do to help farmers increase their incomes?
1. Form a cooperative society.
2. Get accurate data of members of the coop and the size of farms and their current yield.
3. Research and establish markets for juice, pulp, seeds and peels.
4. Secure markets with off-taker agreements.
5. Prepare a professional and profitable business plan for orange processing.
6. I WILL HELP TO SOURCE THE FUNDING REQUIRED!!
President & CEO of IbrahimInspires Foundation | Leadership, Mentorship, and Social Impact.
6 年identify the entrepreneur for the project and l will assist to put a bankable business plan including market creation for the produce.My offtakers will not sign on to any project with government as majority share holder.
Sustainability || Ecotox || Data Analyst || Natural Resource Mgt
6 年This conversation is pretty interesting. I can see William has a good will but as Divine pointed the market must be sorted out first( to get rid of monopolistic effects). This will allow the "invisible hands" and market forces to propel the value chains. NO NEED to reinvent the wheel/create artificial markets at this stage. In my opinion you must "Seek ye first the citrus market and all the good plans you outline can follow".
West Africa Lending Manager
6 年Very good initiative, they need all the support that can be mobilized as there are over 4000 smallholder farmers involved in this value chain in Ghana. The first point though might be reinventing the wheel as there very capable cooperatives with dynamic leadership in all the regions under production. You might talk about a few who may be weak and needed some strengthening. The fact is with only one main processor as the off-taker currently, farmers are quite vulnerable when it comes to issues of contracting and price negotiation. There is need for a vibrant market to drive the chain and attract investors both social and private including the youth into the value chain. Therefore any initiative aimed at providing marketing opportunities to growers will help boost their confidence and trust in this chain and allow them to mobilize resources and efforts to improve professionalism and competitiveness.