The Deputy Minister for Food and Agriculture, John Setor Dumelo, has assured consumers and sellers of tomatoes that prices will fall in the coming weeks.
The deputy minister, in a post on his Facebook page, said the decline will result from increased availability of the produce, as Ghanaian farmers have begun harvesting.
“The prices of tomatoes should see a sharp decline these coming weeks as Ghanaian farmers have started harvesting,” he stated.
Mr Dumelo also revealed that structures have been put in place to ensure the country produces tomatoes even during the dry season. The move is aimed at promoting year-round tomato access and putting an end to recurring shortages.
According to him, all the land needed for production has been cleared, with farming to take place mainly in the northern parts of the country. Nursing of the seeds is expected to begin in October.
“We are also actively preparing for large-scale dry season tomato farming from December to June next year. The lands have been cleared, mostly in the northern part of Ghana, and nursing and transplanting will start from October,” he stated.
Since there is little to no rainfall during the dry season, the deputy minister said the government has provided irrigation inputs and solar-powered boreholes to give farmers access to a steady, round-the-clock water supply.
“We have provided solar powered boreholes as well as irrigation inputs to farmers to actively pursue dry season tomato farming to augment the shortfalls next year,” he explained.
Tomato shortages in the country have driven recent price hikes, largely due to the nation’s failure to practise all-year-round farming.
Sellers have often turned to Burkina Faso to meet customer demand, but that source has proved unsustainable over the past year and some months.