Rice farmers across Ghana are raising concerns over the lack of market access for their produce, despite claiming they have the capacity to meet the country’s annual rice demand.
They say the continued public preference for imported rice has left thousands of tonnes of paddy rice unsold, with large quantities now at risk of going bad.
According to the farmers, the situation has made it difficult for many of them to repay loans taken for production, threatening their livelihoods and the sustainability of local rice farming.
In an interview, rice farmer Mr. Duncan Amoah described the situation as dire, noting that many farmers are struggling to recover their investments.
“The 100,000 bags we’re talking about is just part of it, we’re now entering the major harvesting season, you can’t recoup the money you invest because of labour and other costs. Unfortunately, even public institutions are buying foreign rice, and that’s crippling the market for local producers,” he said.
He explained that the quality of locally milled rice has improved significantly, with modern processing eliminating stones and impurities, yet consumer demand remains low.
“In the past, people complained about stones in local rice. That’s no longer an issue. We are now producing enough to meet national consumption, but lack of market access is our biggest challenge,” he lamented.
Mr. Amoah revealed that he produced about 940 bags of 80kg rice in 2024, but has struggled to sell them.
“When the market women buy your rice, you face serious challenges, payments are delayed, and the prices are far too low,” he added.
Responding to the concerns, Mr. Charles Nornoo, Agricultural Transformation Team Lead at the Office of the President, acknowledged the difficulties but said the government was already taking steps to address them.
“The Ministry has done well by providing funds to the National Food Buffer Stock Company to mop up the rice in the system,” he said. “I’m also glad to hear that more funds are being advanced to help absorb the excess produce in the market.”
Mr. Nornoo suggested that the government engage more licensed aggregators to purchase surplus rice directly from farmers and strengthen monitoring to ensure fair pricing.
“We should also expand institutional procurement for school feeding programmes, prisons, and security agencies — to buy from local farmers,” he said. “We should eat what we grow, and with those measures in place, things will improve.”
