The Benso Oil Palm Plantation (BOPP) purchased 11.933 metric tonnes of fresh palm fruits at an estimated cost of 11.8 million Ghana Cedis from 438 smallholder farmers in 2010.
Mr Samuel Avaala, Estate Manager of the company, announced this at the Ninth Annual General Meeting of the Benso, Adum Banso and BOPP
Smallholders Association (BABBSA) at Adum Banso at the weekend.
The meeting was under the theme: “Empowering Smallholder Farmers into Sustainable Financial Management”.
Mr Avaala said the output of smallholder farmers was expected to be higher this year because many of them were using fertilizers on
their farms.
He said palm fruits to be purchased by the BOPP would therefore increase threefold.
Mr Avaala commended the government for assisting to boost oil palm production by subsidizing fertilizers to members of the
association.
Mr Fiifi Ampong, Secretary of BABBSA, said members of the association were buying fertilizers at high cost before the introduction of the subsidy on fertilizers for the association in May this year.
He expressed the appreciation of the association to the government for assisting the members to increase production at a reduced cost.
Mr Ampong urged the government to make granting of subsidy on fertilizer for the association a policy to assist in reducing poverty
among smallholder farmers.
He said the association had a 55-acre palm oil farm at Benso and the farm, which was established in 2007, was being managed with
proceeds from smallholder investments.
Mr Ampong said the association had acquired another 20 acre plot of land at Benso Subiriso for a similar venture.
Dr (Mrs) Mary Opoku Asiamah, Western Regional Director of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA), who was the guest of honour, called on farmers to contribute towards the realization of the Better Ghana Agenda.
She advised farmers to manage their farms on business lines by keeping records to prevent financial losses and by ensuring
transparency and accountability.
They should also repay all loans granted them by the association and the government to enable them to obtain more loans, she said.
Dr Asiamah said MOFA was prepared to help members of the association to improve their financial position and production through
extension services.
She urged members of the association to take advantage of extension services of MOFA and BOPP.