The Cape Coast Business Advisory Centre (BAC) has organized a five days workshop, to upgrade the skills of twenty palm fruit processors from two communities, in the Cape Coast Metropolis to produce quality palm oil under hygienic environment.
The participants drawn from the Nyinasin and Koforidua Palm Oil Producers Association were taken through topics like "Personal hygiene", "Sanitation at the work place", "Time management", "Packaging" and "Book keeping".
They were also taken through a demonstration of practical preparation and using modern methods to improve quality and taste.
Miss Veronica Essel, Head of the Cape Coast BAC said the centre discovered that the traditional preparation of oil palm was done under very unhygienic condition and was of poor quality thereby attracting low market.
The centre therefore sought assistance from its mother organization, the National Board for Small Scale Industry (NBSSI) and in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, upgraded the skills of the participants to boost their business, in order to break the cycle of poverty among them, she said.
Speaking at the end of the workshop, she was hopeful that with their newly acquired knowledge, the participants would run their business with all seriousness to enable them attract the desired market for their products.
They would also be able to manage time effectively and also keep records.
Miss Essel urged them to put what they had learnt into practice and also educate their colleagues, to ensure the progress and success of their business.
Mrs Victoria Dansoa Abankwa, a Metropolitan Agricultural Officer urged the participants to maintain personal hygiene and ensure that the sanitary condition at their work places were good, because consumers were at risk of contracting diseases if they failed to work under clean condition.
She also urged them to consider packaging as a very important aspect in the business, because it is the packaging that attracts a lot of customers.
The participants were given certificates after the workshop.