The Minister for Food and Agriculture, Eric Opoku, has projected that Ghana will experience a tomato glut within the next three to four months as government steps up efforts to boost local production and reduce the country’s reliance on imports.
Appearing before Parliament’s Committee on Assurances on Thursday, July 9, the Minister said a series of interventions being implemented under the government’s agricultural programme are expected to significantly increase tomato production across the country.
To prevent post-harvest losses, the Minister disclosed that government is putting in place an off-take system to guarantee a market for farmers, while engaging tomato processors to purchase the expected surplus.
He added that government is also investing in solar-powered boreholes to support year-round irrigation, enabling farmers to increase production beyond the traditional growing season.
“We have put in place a lot of measures and within the next three to four months, the results will be there for everyone to see. This is another big assurance. We are anticipating a glut of tomatoes in the coming months and are thinking about how we can get processors to off-take from our farmers. We are doing a lot of solar-powered boreholes across the country,” he said.
The Minister expressed confidence that the measures will strengthen domestic tomato production, improve market opportunities for farmers and gradually reduce Ghana’s dependence on imported tomatoes while supporting the country’s broader food security agenda.
