Tomato growers at Jinijini in the Berekum West Municipality of the Bono Region have appealed to the government to invest in tomato production in the area.
They also called on the government to revamp the defunct Weddi Africa Tomato Processing Factory set up in the area under the One-District-One Factory (1D1F) initiative of the previous administration.
In an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) at Jinijini, one of the largest tomato producing communities in the Bono Region, the farmers regretted that since the factory was shut down from commercial production, it had left hundreds of the youth in the area jobless.
Mr Paul Ofosu, spokesperson for the tomato farmers told the GNA that tomatoes had become scarce in the area because growers lacked funds to go into commercial production.
He said with financial assistance, pumping machines and irrigation facilities, the farmers could grow the vegetable in commercial quantities, feed the factory and create jobs for the people.
Checks reveal that the factory, a wholly Ghanaian owned company constructed at the cost of $16 million was shut down from commercial operation because of lack of fresh tomatoes to feed it.
Hitherto, it was processing 40,000 metric tons of fresh tomato per annum, which translated into 720 crates of tomatoes per shift per day, with the factory also possessing a 500-metric ton cold room facility to hold fresh tomato fruits.
With the government’s 24-hour economy, the tomato farmers said reviving the factory would not only make the sector attractive but also boost local employment.
“That is why we are appealing to the government to give some financial assistance and logistics so that we can produce more to feed the factory”, Mr Ofosu stated, worrying that tomatoes were now scarce in the area because most of the growers lacked funds to go into commercial production.
“In fact, tomato farmers here are ready to increase production, only if the government will come to our aid”, he stated.
During a visit to the Jinijini market, traders lamented about the scarcity of tomatoes in the area nowadays and thereby affecting the price of the vegetable.
Madam Eunice Agyeiwaa, one of the tomato sellers said they had increased the price of the vegetable because they could not get some to buy from the farmers.
The GNA noticed that three balls of fresh tomatoes were selling at GH¢5, while six balls were going for GH¢10.
Many consumers were now opting for tomato paste instead of the fresh ones due to the market price increase.
Another trader, Akua Tawia told the GNA that the sellers now imported fresh tomatoes from neighbouring Burkina Faso for the local market due to the scarcity of the vegetable in the area, saying that had affected the price.
She said the price increase had also resulted in poor sales, adding that because there were no storage facilities quantities of the tomatoes went waste, leading to significant losses.
