Breweries support sorghum production

Breweries on Monday said they would provide additional write-ups to the government on how to make them fit more into the programme of the nation producing sorghum as a raw material for brewing beer and some other drinks.

The representatives of the breweries made the undertaking when they joined scientists and industrialists at a meeting the Ministry of Trade and Industry held for stakeholders to brainstorm on Sorghum Utilization as a special President's Initiative.

Discussions centred on how to introduce sorghum to the farmers to convince them that their produce would have ready markets so that they could have a guaranteed minimum prize, which variety of sorghum was suitable to the breweries and how the breweries could divert to the use the cereal in their plants with minimal change in capital investment.

Mr Ishmael Ashitey, Minister of State, Ministry of Trade, Industries and Presidential Initiatives said the government wanted to make the three northern regions the hub of sorghum production, which when produced on a large scale could feed the breweries.

He said the three regions being economically depressed were suitable for the cultivation of sorghum and farmers there should be mobilised and supported to undertake a large scale production of the cereal.

Mr Ashitey said, "the sorghum project being implemented therefore, targets the identification and commercial production of the right varieties of sorghum for industrial use, particularly for beer brewing, either as an adjunct of malted sorghum , for animal feed production, weaning foods and pharmaceuticals."