The Minister of Food and Agriculture has encouraged farmers in the Upper West Region to adopt the application of inorganic fertilizer on their plants to boost yield and as well protect the health of consumers
The compost was supposedly climate-friendly, encouraged ecological farming, and caused fewer reactions in customers because it included fewer chemicals. It was especially good for fruits and vegetables.
Ms Mavis Derigubah, the District Director of the Department of Agriculture in the Wa East District, said the department has started educating farmers in compost preparation in order to achieve this.
Materials for manufacturing compost were widely available in the environment and on animal farms, according to the Director, who mentioned this in an interview with the Ghanaian Times on Monday at Wa on sustainable agriculture.
She explained that the need for compost was a result of the increase in prices of organic fertiliser on the world market, as well as the need to employ climate-free agricultural practices due to recent concerns about climate change.
Even with the Planting for Food and Jobs that come with subsidised fertiliser, the percentage of subsidy continues to depreciate and it is in order that at some point the farmers are expected to be weaned off government subsidy and be able to purchase the commodity on their own.
“It should not be always that government will continue to support farmers so we are going into compost preparation; we started this year and with the help of some of our staff and extension officers, we teach farmers how to prepare their own compost and use at least for the first application on their plant”, she said.
She explained that chemicals were unhealthy for the health of consumers on the food produced and said the compost could better serve the interest of farmers and consumers alike.
She encouraged the farmers to take the opportunity of the window, and get to know how to make the preparation of compost to offset part of the costs expended on farm inputs such as fertiliser.
The Regional Director of Agriculture, Mr Emmanuel Sasu Yeboah, adding his voice explained that the chemical fertilizer also affected the soil structure if it was used continually and said the compost was more favourable in farming activities.
“The chemical fertilizer when applied on a piece of land for a long time affects the water holding capacity of the soil but the compost helps to improve upon the soil structure”, he said.
He used the opportunity to call on farmers in the region to also invest in animal rearing as part of their agricultural activities to ensure that they had income all year round even when the farming was not bringing in the needed income.