The Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) has vowed not to compromise the integrity of the country as the number one quality cocoa producer in the world.
\nIt will therefore not accept the smuggling of cocoa from its troubled neighbour, Cote d\u2019 Ivoire.
\nMr Anthony Fofie, the Chief Executive, said this at a farmers\u2019 forum at Manfo in the Ahafo-Ano North District on Thursday.
\nThis was his first visit to the area, rated the second highest cocoa producing district in the country, to interact and share ideas with the farmers on how to increase crop yield and maintain the quality of the beans.
\nMr Fofie said Ghana\u2019s cocoa served as a benchmark in the world in terms of quality and emphasised the need for all stakeholders to jealously protect it from any adulteration.
\nHe said the Board had taken some initiatives to help farmers increase production and appealed to them to make maximum use of the hi-tech cocoa seedlings and fertilizers.
\nHe said the Board would, additionally, continue with the rehabilitation of roads in cocoa growing areas and appealed to district assemblies to take keen interest in development projects implemented by the Board in their areas to prevent shoddy job by contractors.
\nThe National President of the Ghana Cocoa, Coffee and Shea-nut Farmers Association, Alhaji Alhassan Bukari, thanked the government for increasing the producer price of cocoa.
\nHe, however, expressed concern about the way some purchasing clerks were cheating farmers and said the Association, acting in harmony with the COCOBOD had imported weight stones for the farmers\u2019 societies to help farmers to know the exact weight of their cocoa even before they take these to the sale points.
\nMr David Addai Amankwah, District Chief Executive for Ahafo-Ano North, appealed to the Board to step up efforts at helping to rehabilitate the bad roads in the district\u2019s cocoa growing communities.
\nNana Kwame Ntim II, Omanhene of Manso, noted that despite its high cocoa production, the area lacked many social amenities and called for increased development assistance to improve the living conditions of the people.
\nSource: GNA<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) has vowed not to compromise the integrity of the country as the number one quality cocoa producer in the world. It will therefore not accept the smuggling of cocoa from its troubled neighbour, Cote d\u2019 Ivoire. Mr Anthony Fofie, the Chief Executive, said this at a farmers\u2019 forum at Manfo […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-272571","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard"],"yoast_head":"\n