Partners of the Eat Ghana Rice Campaign have appealed to Ghanaians, institutions, and corporate bodies to prioritise the consumption of locally-produced rice to help address a growing surplus and safeguard the livelihoods of farmers.
An estimated 1.3 million metric tonnes of paddy rice are currently unsold and stored in warehouses across the country, raising fears of a glut that could threaten the income of thousands of local farmers, the campaign partners warned.
The appeal was contained in a press statement issued yesterday in Accra and shared with The Ghanaian Times by the campaign’s partners, including the John A. Kufuor Foundation, the Competitive African Rice Platform (CARP) of the ECOWAS Rice Observatory (ERO). Others are the Ghana Rice Interprofessional Body (GRIB), the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG), Hopeline Institute, Farm Wallet, and AGRA. The statement was signed by Dr Nana Ama Aning Oppong-Duah.
While acknowledging ongoing government and National Food Buffer Stock Company (NAFCO) efforts to mop up excess stock, the partners stressed that these interventions alone were insufficient to solve the problem.
They urged Ghanaians to play their part by choosing Ghana Rice over imported varieties, noting that a national shift in consumption habits would be the most sustainable way to stabilise the market and empower local farmers.
The statement also addressed the perception of local rice as being of inferior quality, calling it outdated. It highlighted that modern processing technologies, including advanced dehusking, grading, polishing, and colour-sorting machinery, have transformed the value chain, enabling millers to produce clean, high-quality grains that meet Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) and Ghana Standards Authority (GSA) standards.
According to the statement, Ghana Rice now rivals imported brands in quality, offering beautifully polished grains with a fluffy texture ideal for Jollof, Waakye, and plain rice dishes. Locally produced rice, they added, is fresher, more nutritious, and often cheaper than imported varieties.
The statement cited the Ghana Statistical Service’s 2024 Trade Report, noting that rice accounted for 7.8 per cent of Ghana’s total food imports last year, spending about GH¢3 billion on imports despite the availability of high-quality local options.
“Every grain of imported rice purchased is a vote of confidence in foreign farmers and foreign economies,” the statement warned, urging every Ghanaian household, restaurant, hotel, and institution to choose Ghana Rice not only as a matter of taste but as an act of national responsibility.
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