Jun 24, 2026
The Minister of Food and Agriculture, Eric Opoku, has urged Ghanaians to patronise locally processed food products to boost the capacities of local companies.
He said this was the only way by which the companies would be able to expand and create jobs for the teeming unemployed youth.
Speaking during a working visit to local food processing company, P&A Africa Foods Limited at Medie in Accra on Friday, Mr Opoku indicated that local manufacturing is the way to go if the Ghanaian economy was to be resilient.
According to him, Ghana spends about US$3 billion annually on importation of food, saying, “That is hundreds of jobs exported because the more we patronise imported food products, the more financially strong the manufacturers become and the more they expand”.
He noted that Ghanaian processed foods on the market may be more expensive than their foreign counterparts but that may be due to demand and supply “so the more we buy food products made here in Ghana, they’ll be able to produce more and their prices will eventually fall”.
The minister said government, on its part, would support local manufacturing firms with the capital for them to expand and meet local and international demands.
Farmers, Mr Opoku pointed out, have produced and there have been occasional gluts and buying alone for homes would not be sufficient to off-take from the farmers, hence the need for agro-processing.
“We are urging individuals with the capacity to go into processing and I’m happy to note that P&A foods has established a plant that can process maize, cassava, palm, eggs, and vegetables amongst others.
“This is laudable and part of the solution we are being faced with today in Ghana. We urge you to continue with the investment. We want to give you the assurance that the Ministry Of Food And Agriculture is with you and will do everything possible to help you expand,” he assured.
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Managing Director of P&A, Richard Mainoo, requested of government to construct modern warehouses to enhance storage and reduce post-harvest losses.
“Adequate storage infrastructure is essential to ensuring stable supply of raw materials throughout the year and sustaining continuous production under a 24-hour operating model,” he noted.
He lauded government for the 24-hour economy policy stating that it presents a unique opportunity for agro-processing companies to expand adding that the company was ready to sign onto the policy to work around the clock.
P&A Africa Foods Limited, a wholly Ghanaian own company, employs about 100 persons and exports to the US, Canada, and Europe.
BY JULIUS YAO PETETSI
Jun 22, 2026
The CEO of the National Food Buffer Stock Company (NAFCO), George Abradu-Otoo, says government’s decision to commit ¢300 million towards building a national grain reserve marks the beginning of a new era for food security in Ghana.
Speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express Business Edition on Thursday, he described the intervention as unprecedented and a major policy shift, even though the amount falls far short of what is required to make a significant impact.
“Last year, Minister of Finance Dr Ato Forson announced that they were giving us further ¢200 million to continue the good work that we were doing, so in other words, so far we had only ¢300 million,” he said.
Mr Abradu-Otoo explained that the resources available to the Buffer Stock Company remain inadequate for large-scale grain purchases aimed at stabilising prices and protecting farmers from post-harvest losses.
“If we need to do proper meaningful mopping up of excess grains, we need no less than ¢1.5 billion, so you can imagine what ¢300 million has done,” he noted.
Despite the funding gap, he insisted the allocation should be viewed as an important first step.
“But it’s a good beginning because it hasn’t been done before. That’s where I draw my comfort from,” he said.
According to him, the significance of the initiative lies not only in the money committed but in government’s recognition of the need for a strategic national food reserve.
“It’s a good beginning for the government to even think in the first place that we need to have a national food reserve,” he stressed.
Mr Abradu-Otoo revealed that Ghana has long been an outlier within the West African sub-region for lacking a formal food reserve system.
“Because if you take the West African sub-region, Ghana is the only country that did not have a food reserve, can you believe that?” he said.
He added that even countries facing security and economic challenges have maintained grain reserves to cushion their populations against supply disruptions and food shortages.
“Interesting, we can also have Mali, etc, have a national food reserve,” he observed.
The Buffer Stock CEO believes that establishing a grain reserve will strengthen Ghana’s ability to respond to food production shocks, support farmers by purchasing surplus harvests, and improve national food security over the long term.
For him, the challenge now is to build on the initial investment and mobilise the additional resources needed to expand grain purchases to meaningful levels.
Jun 19, 2026
The National Food Buffer Stock Company (NAFCO) and the Artisanal Palm Oil Millers and Outgrowers Association Ghana ( APOMOG) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding ( MoU) to streamline the supply of palm oil to schools under the Free SHS Programme.
Under the MoU, NAFCO will assigned the Association the responsibility to supply wholesome, quality, nutritious palm oil to second cycle institutions in a timely manner.
The arrangement is intended to ensure quality, standardization and traceability within the palm oil school supply chain.
Chief Executive Officer of NAFCO, Mr George Abradu-Otoo said the partnership is driven by the desire to ensure proper feeding of students .
An official of APOMOG, Mr Paul Amaning said with a 36,000 membership, mainly women, the partnership will ensure emplyment, income and sustainability of oil palm processors while ensuring the safety of student consumers of the product.
Jun 19, 2026
As further demonstration of our NAFCO’s resolve to assist rice farmers who are experiencibg glut, CEO, Mr George Abradu-Otoo on Monday interacted with rice farmers in the Asutuare enclave on measures to mitigate their plight.
He announced that NAFCO will in the next few days take custody of a 1000mt Warehouse at Shai Hills to facilitate the storage of rice to be purchased from the farmers by NAFCO licencsed aggregators.
The farmers were elated at the announcement.
The DEC for Shai-Osu, Hon. Ignatius Godfred Dordoe was present at the meeting.
