Cost of production has gone up for poultry farmers – Agric Minister admits

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Minister for Food and Agriculture, Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto, has admitted that the cost of production for poultry farmers

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He however noted that the contributory factors to the rise in prices of goods and services were beyond government's control.

Speaking to the press after touring some selected commercial farms in the Eastern Region over the weekend, Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto stressed that external factors were the major cause of high inflation in the country now.

“When we met the poultry farmers, it is very obvious that prices of poultry feeds which make up 70 per cent of cost of production has gone up. If you compare prices this year in January, February, March, April and May, and compare to the same period in 2021, 2020, 2019, the prices have shot up. They have shot up for very simple reason that the chemicals have gone up two or three times and that means the cost of production has gone up on the farm," he said.

“At the same time, fuel prices have trebled and it means that haulage from the farm gate to the centres of consumption have also gone up. So, these we don’t have control over, these are external factors that are impacting seriously on the price formation," he added.

Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto also backlashed commercial banks for not giving loans to farmers.

The unavailability of credit to farmers, the Agric Minister said, has had dire consequences on the production of farmers.

He announced his outfit's decision to introduce a bill in parliament that will compel banks to give loans to farmers and those in the value chain.

This, he said, will be a way to ensure that commercial banks play their role towards the growth of the agricultural sector.