Accra - Cassava: game-changer for national prosperity

Accra, Oct.23, GNA - Manihot esculenta popularly known as Cassava, has been identified as a very promising crop for both consumption and industrial use.

The crop with its economic prospects has been acclaimed the game-changer towards national prosperity and growth.

With extensively cultivated throughout the country, Cassava is arguable the third largest source of food carbohydrates after rice and maize. It is one of the most drought-tolerant crops, capable of growing on marginal soils.

Root of cassava contains vitamin C and vitamins of the B group and minerals such as calcium and phosphorus.

Nigeria is the largest manufacturer, while Thailand is the largest exporter of cassava in the world.

In Ghana, Cassava is a major staple food in almost every home, providing basic diet as well as serving as industrial raw material for the breweries, pharmaceuticals and ethanol for industrial use.

In view of its domestic and industrial value, Mr William Agyei-Manu, the Executive Director, Ghana Cassava Centre of Excellence has therefore called for the development of a national Cassava Sustainable Initiative.

He said the initiative should among other things encourage large scale farming to feed both domestic and industrial market, inculcate sound post-harvest management practices and encourage increased processing of fresh cassava roots.

Mr Agyei-Manu addressing an international conference and exhibition on Cassava Utilisation and Marketing in Accra recently, he woo investors and policymakers to connect, share best practice and promote investment of the cassava value chain.

He noted that the Ghanaian economy alone requires more than 200,000 metric tonnes of starch.

According to him, Guinness Ghana Brewery Limited and the Accra Brewery Limited as well as the pharmaceuticals companies are in dire need of starch. These companies he said rely on imports for their raw materials.

He therefore advocated for mechanization of cassava for commercialization purposes which we could also export to the Asian market. Mechanization of cassava can dramatically change the economy of about 90 per cent of small holder farmers who engages in the cassava value chain.

Ghana News Agency information indicates that Ghana is the world's sixth largest and Africa's third largest producer of cassava at 16 million metric tonnes as at 2013.

An estimated 70 per cent of all farmers in the country are involved in the cultivation of cassava.

A research conducted by the Food Research Institute (FRI) of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) on the Value chain analysis and levels under Work Package (WP) 7 of the Gratitude project, also indicates that the production and processing of cassava constitute a major source of income and rural livelihood, contributing about 22 per cent of Ghana's agricultural GDP.

The Gratitude project investigates gains from losses of roots and tubers (Cassava and Yam), with special emphasis on developing useful products from waste (peels, liquid waste and pulps) in Ghana, Nigeria and Vietnam.

The research shows an increasing trend in cassava production over the past five years.

Statistics available to the GNA indicates that in 2007, total production of cassava was a little over 10.2 million metric tonnes; 11.3 million metric tonnes in 2008; 12.2 million metric tonnes in 2009; 13.5 million metric tonnes in 2010; and 14.2 metric tonnes million in 2011.

The production of cassava increased steadily with the inauguration of the Ayensu Starch factory in February 2004 under the Presidential Special Initiative (PSI) on cassava, to create a market for cassava growers, develop cassava into starch and allied products, and create job avenues for the youth.

The factory however stopped operation in 2006 due to technical difficulties and the inability of peasant farmers to engaged by the company to supply the needed requirement for the efficient production capacity of the facility.

To address the lack of sufficient raw materials to feed the factory, the management of Ayensu acquired 2,000 acres of land to cultivate cassava on a large scale with the hope of processing about 22,000 tonnes of cassava annually.

Another obstacle to the operations of the company was the inappropriate packaging for export to the international market.

Stakeholders in the cassava value chain however, are appealing to the government to consider the revival of the Ayensu Cassava Factory since it ceased operations for the second time in December 2011, due to operational and financial challenges, which were largely attributed to inadequate power supply to sustain production and meet supply targets.

The revival of the factory will enable the exporting of starch to the international market and add value to the cassava-value chain.

Many companies operating in the West African region had expressed their preparedness to import cassava starch from within, as that would ensure enormous cost-savings for them.

Madam Adwoa Benewaa, a cassava trader at the Tema Station, said cassava is a very favourable staple crop but when mismanaged could cause diverse consequences. Cassava production and selling has become a major occupation for most women in Akwapim. Quality cassava is one which can be preserved and used for other things such as the kokonte, gari etc.

Madam Serwaa Addo, a cassava trader at the Dansoman Market, said cassava is a crop whose leaves when eaten helps in digestion and prevents constipation. She said the crop has numerous values and that it should be examine and further research carried into it.

The cassava industry has identified more convenient versions of traditional processed products, use of cassava flour (low quality cassava flour) as import substitutes for plywood and paperboard adhesives, potential markets for cassava products in the production of sweeteners, mosquito coils and brewing industry.

Others were the use of improved technologies, such as mechanised (flash, rotary and bin) dryers, mechanized peeling, improvement in sun-drying and recycling from de-watering as well as market potential for the use of waste and peels for mushroom production and animal feed.

I am confident that the international workshop held by the Ghana Cassava Centre of Excellence would be an eye-opener and cassava with its immense benefits when properly looked at, would bring a lot of benefit to farmers, the Ayensu factory, other value chain users and the country at large.

A GNA feature by Celestina Seyram Tsievor