HELP OUR TOMATO FARMERS (FEB 14)

TOMATO farmers are complaining against certain practices that pose a threat to their operations.
First, tomato farmers in the Upper East Region have threatened to starve the Northern Star Tomato Factory at Pwalugu of raw materials until they are allowed to purchase shares in the company.
They are also demanding that the Ministry of Trade and Industry and the company negotiate with them over the species and quantity of tomato required for the operations of the factory, as well as the pricing regime.
The tomato factory at Pwalugu went through various challenges until it was refurbished by the Ministry of Trade and Industry in 2007. But it operated for only six months as a result of the lack of raw materials.
A report in a national daily quoted Mr Philip Aboyori, the National President of the National Farmers and Fishermen Award Winners Association, as saying at a meeting with tomato farmers in the region that the association had no legal working relations with the tomato factory at the moment.
Tomato farmers also have to contend with competition from imported tomato puree and fresh tomato. The lack of a ready market and factories to purchase the produce from the farmers threaten the profitability of tomato farming in the country.
The country is always in a dilemma because during the harvesting season tomatoes become so abundant that the farmers sell their produce at give-away prices, while in the lean season consumers complain about the prohibitive prices at which tomatoes are sold.
From time immemorial, the country has had to contend with the problem of making tomatoes available throughout the year. Consumers are excited when tomatoes are in season, while farmers are in a cheerful mood during the lean season when prices of the produce go through the roof.
As a nation, we have not paid due regard to agriculture, such that there is no consistent pricing framework for most agricultural produce.
The only way to motivate people to go into farming is the introduction of guaranteed prices for our food crops so that in the event of a glut our farmers can still get adequate returns on their investments.
The time has also come for the government to look again at the liberalised economic environment, since stiff competition from imported foodstuffs is killing the morale of local farmers.
We know that any move to introduce protectionism on our market will come with a cost, but at least it will help to sustain our local industry. For, after all, the Western world continues to provide subsidies for farmers and other strategic sectors of their economies.
The DAILY GRAPHIC believes that support for local initiatives holds the key to creating wealth and generating employment. The agricultural sector alone, if well supported, can create many jobs for the teeming unemployed youth.
Since the country is endowed with arable land, the DAILY GRAPHIC thinks that the time has come for the government to prioritise agriculture so that the sector can contribute more meaningfully towards the growth of the economy.
Any initiative to boost agriculture will stimulate the economy, but to achieve that, it will be worthwhile for the Mills administration to revive the Youth in Agriculture Programme to provide more incentives for the youth to return to the land.