Union advocates policy on health and safety

Accra, Jan. 5, GNA - The General Agriculture Workers Union (GAWU) of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) has called for an agriculture policy on health and safety to cover the whole gamut of food production and processing.

The policy, it said, should regulate random handling and usage of chemicals at production stage, inside and outside manufacturing, training for handlers as well as prescription on the conduct of sales. Speaking to the Ghana News Agency in an interview on Friday in Accra, Mr David Kangah, the General Secretary of GAWU said, as at now there is no policy of such nature and that has paved the way for anybody to purchase chemicals on the street.

He said the absence of such policy would eventually affect the health of consumers and also the quality of products. Mr Kangah also called on district assemblies to join hands with Ghana Water Company to work out a scheme under which vegetable growers would get clean water for their gardens. He said the situation where gardeners use polluted water on such items posed health hazards to consumers and suggested that boreholes could be one option.