Press Release: Vegetable Farmers Acquire Skills in Effective Pest Management
Some selected vegetables farmers in the Central, Greater
Accra and Volta regions have recently received training in integrated pest
management (IPM) to enable them cultivate quality and healthy products for the
export and local markets.
Held on the theme ‘Integrated Pest Management for Quality
Vegetables Production ’, 10 nucleus farmers selected from various farmers’
associations in each of the three regions were taken through a three-day
training of trainers (TOT) course on effective IPM. The participants cultivate
chilli pepper, tomatoes, okra, eggplants, cucumber and others. In the end, the
30 trained farmers are expected to roll out the training to cover 300 more
farmers within the intervention areas.
The training was organized by the Vegetable Producers and
Exporters Association of Ghana (VEPEAG) and supported by GIZ, the German Agency
for International Cooperation, in partnership with Ghana’s Ministry of Food and
Agriculture (MOFA).
At Baduatta in the Gomoa East District of the Central Region,
the farmers were taken to a tomatoes greenhouse farm and an open field to put
into practice what they learnt. At the
VEPEAG head office in Cantonments, Accra, in the La Dade-Kotopon Municipal
Assembly, the farmers underwent similar exercises.
The TOT program for the vegetable farmers in the Ketu North
District of the Volta Region occurred in the Assembly hall with fieldwork at
Maphlix Trust Farm and a visit to Fafa FM, a community radio station. Similar
programs are expected to be organized in the other regions soon.
The series of training programs has been occasioned by the
ban on vegetable exports from Ghana by the European Union (EU) due to failure
to comply with EU phytosanitary laws. The EU ban was lifted on 31st October,
2017.
“There were a lot of interventions by PPRSD [Plant Protection
and Regulatory Services Directorate] which led to the lifting of the ban.
Greater part of the problem had to do with pests and disease management. VEPEAG
approached GIZ to help train their farmers on integrated pest management, which
is part of the association’s mission.
Miss. Lydia Baffour-Awuah, an agricultural expert with GIZ,
said in an interview at Buduatta.
“The farmers are used to resorting to chemicals but we
believe IPM is the best approach. The use of chemical should be the last resort
after all other interventions have failed. We are concerned with the health and
safety of the farmers and consumers. We need to educate farmers on the proper
use of chemicals,” Miss. Baffour-Awuah
stated.
Mr. Charles Mintah, a food safety
and agribusiness consultant who was the trainer, informed the farmers that
pests were the main cause of low yields on the fields of the farms, so all
efforts should be made in minimizing their occurrence. He taught the farmers
how to undertake credible and effective scouting to detect pests and diseases
on their farms.
“Economic threshold should be considered after monitoring.
That is the level at which the pest can cause economic damage to farms for
which reason controls must be applied,” Mr. Mintah said.
“We discourage the application of chemicals. We want you to
adopt alternative methods to chemicals and minimise, as much as possible, the
use of chemicals on farms. Physical controls and Biological control whereby the
farmer will use predators and other organisms that do not harm crops but attack
the pests on their farms,” he emphasised.
Mr. Joseph Tontoh, the President of VEPEAG, said “the export
business is complicated so the training was organized so farmers can be abreast
with new trends in pest management. Farmers should adopt optional methods of
managing pests such as IPM and minimize the use of chemicals, but when
necessary, use the right pesticides.”
Mr. Tontoh said MOFA was already helping the members of
VEPEAG through the PPRSD. He appealed
to the government to create an enabling environment for the farmers to produce
quality vegetables. “Modern pack houses are required since the producers cannot
export without them. The government should assist farmers to get credit,” he
added. He thanked GIZ for funding the program and hoped the support for VEPEAG
will continue.
Thank you
Joseph Tontoh
President
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