Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) has said that beginning May 2017, cocoa fertilisers will be offered to farmers at a subsidy.
Under a new policy directive by the management of COCOBOD to enhance farmers’ access to cocoa fertilisers to improve yield of cocoa farms and their incomes, a bag of the granular fertiliser is now being offered to cocoa farmers at GHc80.00, and a litre of the liquid fertiliser is GHc20.00, representing subsidies of 53.4% and 81.03%, respectively.
Currently, the average purchase price per bag of granular fertiliser is GHc171.75 and a litre of liquid fertiliser is GHc105.00.
COCOBOD has therefore urged farmers “to insist on buying the fertilisers at the subsidisd price from Cocoa Licensed Buying Companies (LBCs), Cocoa Inputs Companies, Offices of Cocoa Farmers’ Associations and Private Inputs Distributors across the country.”
The management of COCOBOD is also encouraging its hardworking cocoa farmers to seize the opportunity in “this new arrangement and apply only approved fertilisers on their farms at the right time for maximum impact.”