Farmers likely to reduce farm sizes over high input cost, fertilizer crisis

Some farmers in the Sissala area have hinted at reducing their farm sizes during the 2022 farming season due to the high cost of farm inputs.

Mr Abu Nabong, a 55-year-old farmer from Mwanduanu kroboi in the Sissalla East Municipality, told the Ghana News Agency that farmers’ preparation ahead of this year’s season showed a little anxiety as compared to other years.

He said new farm fields were not being cleared in most communities as always witnessed in previous years.

Mr Nabong said this year, farm sizes were likely to be reduced as a bag of fertilizer is being sold at about GH¢380.00 in 2022, up from GH¢200.00 last season.

“As a farmer, the farming of maize has become crucial in view of it being a ‘ready market’ product as compared to other crops like soya beans, cowpea and that explains why I can’t stop the farming of maize.”

He said weedicide, which used to cost GH¢18.00 last year is now sold at GH¢50.00 at the Tumu market, which was one of the reasons why they could not be able to keep to their farm sizes.

“We would go to the farm but the price of fertilizer would determine how many acres we would cultivate for this year.  We would have to cut down on the acres we do every year,” he said.

Mr Kandie Salam, a 47-year-old farmer, said the year looked already difficult as products realised from the previous year were below expectation, adding that if the information picked was anything to go by, then maize production would suffer a reduction because of the high cost of fertilizer, ploughing, weedicide and others.

Mrs Jibrilla Alimata from Kowie said the one-acre she cultivated every year might not be done this year given the high cost of input.

She appealed to the government to subside the input to salvage the situation.