The chief cocoa farmer for the Suhum-Kraboa Coaltar District has called for regulation and control of activities of cocoa purchasing companies.
"The desire of some of the companies to buy even 'Not Thoroughly Dried (NTD)' beans had caused the increase in the stealing of the beans in most cocoa growing areas."
Nana Debrah Amanor was hosting the Ghana News Agency (GNA) on his three acres of cocoyam, three acres of plantain and five acres of yam farms at Akim Oda in the Birim Central Municipality.
The 76-year-old chief farmer from Nfranor near Suhum had earlier visited his four mile square cocoa farm and 10 acres cassava and other
food-crop at Assin Wawase.
He appealed to cocoa farmers, who benefited from fertilizers, to pay for them to for others to benefit from the scheme.
He advised farmers to clear their farms before spraying the cocoa trees in order to have high yield, adding that, swollen shoot disease was hampering the efforts of cocoa farmers.
Nana Amanor appealed to cocoa farmers to allow their infested cocoa trees to be cut down for replanting.
He noted that if diseased trees were not cut down, they could infest the healthy ones.