Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto, Minister of Food and Agriculture, has admitted that the cost of chicken production has increased over time.
He did say, though, that this is due to issues outside the government's control.
He noted that increased crude oil prices on the global market are having an impact on local gasoline costs. Chemicals for the process, he noted, have also increased in price.
He made these remarks on a weekend visit to several commercial farms in the Eastern Region, which was filmed by TV3's Eastern Regional Correspondent Yvonne Neequaye.
"When we visited with the poultry producers, it was clear that the price of chicken feeds, which account for 70% of the total cost of production, had increased. If you compare pricing.
When comparing costs in January, February, March, April, and May of this year to the same period in 2021, 2020, and 2019, prices have risen dramatically. They've risen for the simple reason that the cost of chemicals has increased by two or three times, implying an increase in agricultural production costs.
"At the same time, gasoline prices have tripled, implying that transportation costs from the farm gate to consumer centers have increased as well." So, these are external elements over which we have no influence, and which have a significant impact on price formation.
"The problem is that as a result, the cost of doing business in agriculture has increased, which is why chicken producers, for example, are suffering."
Because their working capital can no longer support the new higher pricing, they have decreased their production to 50,000 birds. Who is where the banks have failed us in agriculture, since the banks that do business with these poultry farmers should be able to provide them with credit to allow them to maintain or even enhance their output," he added.
"Unfortunately, the banks have stayed away, and as a result, they have had to cut the amount of output," he continued. Their view was that the government had done nothing despite everything that was going on. [However], we took the time, over an hour and a half, to explain to them what the government is doing to attempt to correct the situation.
Following the explanation, it was clear that they were quite pleased with our efforts.
"We are putting up a lot of effort to guarantee that commercial banks are brought in, including the prospect of enacting laws requiring commercial banks to lend a percentage of their portfolio to farmers and others in the value chain, such as processors and others." We wouldn't be the first country to do so; India has been doing so for more than 30 years.
"So you will surely hear something in Parliament on this problem, as a method of ensuring that commercial banks play their job, because the government is playing its role by subsidizing inputs like fertilizer, the banks should be allowed to play their role as well."
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