Abapa to boost cocoa purchases

Abapa Golden Limited, a licenced cocoa-buying company, says its expansion drive - expected to begin in the upcoming light crop season in three regions -- is targetted at boosting its annual crop purchases and enhancing job-creation for the country’s youth.

The company intends to invest approximately GH¢100, 000 to expand its operations in the other three main cocoa-growing regions in the country, namely Brong Ahafo, Ashanti and Central Regions.

“We are strongly in the Western Region and want to augment our operations in the Brong Ahafo Region starting this main crop season. We are getting new depots, trucks, weighing scales and are ready to employ more purchasing clerks to beef-up our operations,” Mr. Samuel Anane, Chief Executive Officer of the company, told B&FT in an interview to deny media reports that its cocoa purchasing licence has been revoked by the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD).

Mr. Anane explained that the company’s licence has never been revoked since it started operations in 2009. “Our current cocoa purchases have been exceeding COCOBOD’s minimum buying ceiling of 2,000 metric tonnes for both main and light crop seasons.

“We operate in about 12 districts with officers and purchasing clerks. We do our grading through the quality control board of COCOBOD and the ports,” he said, adding that investors, both local and international, should come on board to partner the company to drive the cocoa industry.

“We have good packages for farmers -- such as incentives in the form of fertilisers, chemicals -- and offering opportunities to young graduates who would like to take farming as their business.”

Currently, there are 27 LBCs involved in the internal marketing of cocoa. The Produce Buying Company (PBC) is the largest buyer while Akuafo Adanfo, Armajaro Ghana Limited, and Olam occupy the second, third and fourth places respectively.

Cocoa production has increased significantly since the difficult 1999/2000 crop season, reaching an all-time high of one million metric tonnes in the 2010/2011 crop season. COCOBOD is targetting a 2012/2013 crop-year harvest of 800,000 metric tonnes, despite delayed rains this year.