Piles of unsold certified seed has left growers in the Upper East Region appealing to the government to urgently come to their aid.
With large quantities of produce stuck in warehouses, the farmers said weak market demand has left significant volumes of certified seeds in storage, threatening their investments and livelihoods.
During a stakeholder engagement organised by the National Seed Council in Bolgatanga, they called on the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to offtake the excess stock and create reliable markets for locally produced seeds.
As part of urgent measures, the growers also urged the government to put restrictions on seed imports to create more opportunities for local seed producers and help them regain lost market share.
Concerns Over Weighing and Bagging
According to the Chief Executive Officer of Akandem Farms, Maxwell Akandem, seed growers had accumulated large quantities of grains that remained in storage because of inadequate demand.
“We have large quantities of grains in our stores. We are appealing to government to come and clear them for us,” he said.
Another seed grower, Doris Adda, some buyers are taking advantage of the situation and unfairly weighing the products saying the system was reducing the value farmers received for their produce.
“The way buyers scale our produce is worrying. They use big sacks, like size 5, and buy it for just 360 Ghana cedis. We are losing,” she said.
Chairman of the Seed Growers Association, Sule Agholisi, called for a policy that regulates the weighing and measurement of agricultural produce, arguing that the current practices put farmers at a disadvantage.
Mark Awini, another farmer, also identified the bagging of maize as a major challenge affecting growers.
“The bagging of maize is also a big problem. It affects us the farmers because we don’t get the right value,” he said.
National Seed Council Responds
While responding to these concerns, the Chairman of the National Seed Council, Alhaji Bubakar Mumuni, advised the seed growers in the region to provide accurate information on their numbers, production capacity and output.
He said reliable data would enable the government to better understand the challenges facing the sector and design appropriate interventions.
According to Alhaji Mumuni, the meeting was organised to explore workable strategies to rejuvenate the seed industry, address the issue of fake seeds, and improve the supply of high-quality certified seeds.
He further revealed that the Ministry of Food and Agriculture would reassess current policies and regulations to support the growth of the industry and ensure a more stable future for local seed producers.
