Finatrade provides market for local rice

Page 24/25: Daily Graphic, January 15, 2010.
Story: Albert K. Salia
CONTINENTAL Commodities Trading Company (CCTC) Limited, a subsidiary of the Finatrade Group, yesterday gave meaning to its pledge to provide a guaranteed market for local rice farmers when it took delivery of 761 bags of perfumed local rice produced by farmers in the Hohoe municipality and surrounding areas.
The rice, packaged under the brand name “Pride”, was produced in partnership with ACDI/VOCA, the implementing agency of the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA).
Milled at Prairie Volta Ltd at Aveyime, the 761 bags constitute the first consignment of 2,000 tonnes of paddy rice at an estimated value of GH¢1 million to be delivered to CCTC.
As a result of the pledge by the CCTC to provide a guaranteed market for local farmers, the ACDI/VOCA organised 84 rice farmers, whose acreage ranged from one to 50, to produce the rice.
The Corporate Affairs Director of Finatrade, Mr John Awuni, said the initiative was evidence of Finatrade’s commitment to contribute to the promotion of local rice production and consumption in Ghana.
“Finatrade takes pride in being the first foreign rice company in Ghana to support local rice production,” he said.
He said in the last decade, the company had made consistent strides in assisting local rice growers, especially ICOUR, the Dawhenye Rice Farmers Co-operative Group and those in Afife and Kpong in the Volta Region.
Mr Awuni said in the 2010 planting season, MiDA and Finatrade, in partnership with the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, would increase the number of rice farmers under the project.
“It is our firm belief that fruitful partnerships such as the Finatrade-MiDA-ACDI/VOCA project are key to the building of a vibrant local rice industry,” he said.
According to him, initiatives such as that helped to save rice businesses from foreign exchange exposure and support local rice farmers to become more productive, thereby increasing the incomes of farmers and creating employment.
Mr Awuni said Finatrade was willing to partner the government in its quest to help build a thriving local rice industry by supporting producers and various actors in the rice value chain.