Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto, Minister of Food and Agriculture, has expressed delight with Zoomlion Ghana Limited's private sector commitment to revolutionize industry and manufacture mass organic fertilizer in the face of a worldwide fertilizer scarcity.
He described Zoomlion Ghana Limited's capital industrial investment in the transformation program, which was backed by other private enterprises, in the production of organic fertilizer to feed the rural population, as tremendous and deserving of praise from the government.
After a visit of the Kumasi Compost and Recycling Plant, the Agriculture Minister spoke to press (KCARP). As part of his working tour to the Ashanti Region, the minister previously visited a liquid fertilizer facility in the Atwima Nwabiagya District and farmer organizations in other parts of the Ashanti Region.
to examine agricultural growth and challenges in the region
Dr. Akoto was astounded by the magnitude of KCARP, which he said is larger than the Accra Compost and Recycling Plant (ACARP) in Adjen Kotoku, Greater Accra Region.
KCARP, a subsidiary of Zoomlion Ghana Limited and part of the Jospong Group of Companies' (JGC) Environment and Sanitation Cluster, is set to be Africa's largest of its type.
It accepts all types of garbage, processes it to create high-quality organic fertilizer, and recycles the plastics into usable goods such as waste bins, tables, chairs, and other storage containers.
The minister said he was worried when it became clear during one of the ECOWAS agric ministers' meetings, which he chaired, that the sub-region was experiencing a fertilizer shortage, but he is relieved after seeing what the KCARP, ACARP, and the IRECOPs, all subsidiaries of Zoomlion, and other partners, are doing in the area of organic fertilizer production.
He blamed the global chemical fertilizer scarcity on the upheavals in Ukraine and Russia, and recommended Ghanaian farmers to buy local products.
Dr. Akoto said it was encouraging to note that the 18 fertilizer manufacturers and suppliers who had applied to the ministry and informed it of their skills at a recent meeting are working hard to satisfy the farmers' demands.
He especially stated that Zoomlion has clearly invested significantly in organic fertilizer manufacture, and that the government recognizes this effort and would guarantee that farmers patronize it for the sake of the Ghanaian economy.
"During my visit to the provinces in Ghana, I was also very surprised by the practically instantaneous demand for organic fertilizer," the minister said.
He stated that as part of the Planting for Food and Jobs initiative, the government will subsidize organic fertilizer and raise the bar for local enterprises to produce organic fertilizer correspondingly.
Mr. Eugine Amoh-Asamoa, KCARP's Communication and Corporate Affairs Manager, said that the company produces around 3,000 (25kg bags) every day. In other words, 35,000 bags are created each week.