A statement issued by Farmgate Ltd on Monday, copied to the Ghana News Agency, said the agreement sought to drive national tomato self-sufficiency through a private sector-led model, with the Government providing enabling support and coordination.
It said the initiative would expand an out-grower scheme to about 40,000 acres, targeting annual production of approximately 400,000 metric tonnes of fresh tomatoes.
The programme would be supported by processing facilities with a combined capacity of 480 metric tonnes per day, expected to produce about 200,000 metric tonnes of tomato puree annually, the statement said.
“By stabilising supply throughout the year, the initiative is expected to create a more balanced and predictable market environment,” it said.
The project would deploy post-harvest infrastructure, including packhouses, pre-processing centres and logistics hubs, to improve handling and distribution.
“The initiative is expected to generate over 300,000 direct and indirect jobs across production, aggregation, logistics, processing and distribution,” the statement added.
Ghana’s annual tomato requirement is estimated at about 805,000 metric tonnes, while current production stands at approximately 510,000 metric tonnes, leaving a gap of nearly 300,000 metric tonnes.
The statement said the country continued to rely on imports to meet domestic demand, while also recording significant post-harvest losses during peak production periods.
“Through a structured system of guaranteed off-take, farmers are assured of a reliable market for their produce, which improves income stability and incentivises increased productivity.”
FarmMate called on stakeholders, including farmers, processors, financiers and development partners to participate in the initiative to support expansion across the value chain.
Source : GNA
