Ghanaian breaks through in US

Connecticut (United States) --- He is a chemist and a computer software engineer, but he has abandoned high-profile, respectable and well-paid jobs in his areas of specialisation and guess what, he is selling kenkey, fufu, ‘shito’, pounded yam, other African foods and a range of spices.

A few months after introducing his brands of Geisha (Adom Tinapa) onto the American market, they caught on so fast that, GOYA, one of the giants in the US food industry, promptly sued him, ostensibly for unfair trade practices, but in reality, for capturing the “geisha” market. He won the case and he is marching on, lifting the flag of Ghana and making a strong case for self-employment.

Even with his success, some of his “learned friends,” (apologies to lawyers), think he is “crazy” and charge that, he has “lowered his standards.” But as if that is not enough, “lowering of standards”, this man mows the lawn himself both at home and at work; often cleans the factory floor while his employees are at other jobs; does his own plumbing and drives his delivery van personally across the length and breadth of the United States of America. He calls that “sweat equity – the most important financing anyone can get.”

But why would anyone, especially, a Fanti (the white-collar breed) descend from the ivory tower to the factory? “Patriotism,” says Mr John Ackeifi, affectionately called ‘Brother John,’ founder, Chief Executive Officer of Adom Foods Limited, Bloomfield, Connecticut, US. And he must be right.

He has lived and studied in the US since 1977 but he has refused to naturalise, preferring instead to use the Green Card, a document, which legally makes a permanent resident alien in the US. “My green card which I got in 1982 is enough. I cannot change my Ghanaian identity for any reason,” he says with pride and relish. “It may surprise some people, but that word (patriotism) is the fuel that drives the engine of success,” he said.

Mr Ackeifi says he want to develop Ghanaian and African foods to the level where everybody, irrespective of race, culture, religion or any other consideration, will love and buy for what they are worth. According to him, his greatest joy is seeing non-Africans, especially whites, picking up his products from the shelves to buy and use.

In fact, that has already started and the “patriot” occasionally goes incognito to shops selling his goods, and indulges in his fantasy of watching “aliens” buy his African products.

Born 50 years ago to Rev John Ackeifi Snr, a retired Methodist Minister and Mrs Comfort Ackeifi, deceased house-wife, this Ajumako native spent his early childhood and education around the country, his father’s priestly duties and the resultant transfer being the cause.

He completed his GCE Ordinary Level Education while at the Asankragua Secondary School after a stint at the Wenchi Secondary School, and after his sixth-form at Fijai Secondary School, he got a US-Government Scholarship to study International Skills in Japan before studying Chemistry, between 1977 and 1981 at the Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut, on another US scholarship.

John Ackeifi Jnr then studied computer programming and software engineering after abandoning a doctorate programme at the Tuff University, Medford, Massachusetts. Before long, he landed a job as a computer programme at Aetna Life Insurance Company, Windsor, Connecticut, and later got a software engineering position in Alabama, Mobile.

But the pull of self-employment was so strong that, the young man started his own company around 1989, designing computer software for clients for five years. Soon, he became disappointed at the returns following his inability to penetrate the tough American computer market, not for inferior products but rather, for being unknown and unaccepted.

It was at this point that, his “chemist” side began prompting him and he dreamed up the idea of producing African foods in a hygienic and internationally-accepted fashion. That was how Adom Foods Limited was born in February 1994.

Soon, requests for “shito” started pouring in and he began producing that too. From there, he developed a spice-line, which he named “Natural Spice.” Products in that line are: ground red pepper, crushed pepper, ground ginger, garlic powder, curry powder and ground black pepper.

Before long, “fufu” powder joined the growing list of Adom products. Pounded Yam, a delicacy of the Nigerians, was added and the company found a ready and desperately-waiting Nigerian market for that. In fact, in E-mail feedback messages to the company, our West African neighbours accused the CEO of “unbrotherly conduct” for not introducing pounced yam earlier.

With expansion faster than envisaged, Adom Foods bought in January 1996, a 36,000-square-foot-space and converted it into a modern production facility. Other products including banku, gari, peanut butter and cornflour, were soon added. By this time, the captured African market had expanded to magnetize African-Americans but the budding entrepreneur was not satisfied.

With the sky as the limit, Brother John weighed the odd possibility of introducing some of his products, especially the spices, into purely American/European supermarkets. It was an uphill task because most of such shops, with their mainly white and conservative afraid of losing their cherished patrons who deemed the mere idea of African goods in those shops, just too repulsive.

But the lion-hearted Ackeifi persisted and a few shops invited him to talk about his products. He convinced them and made them to create an “African International Foods” section for his products. From its humble beginnings, Adom Foods has developed to a point where people now shop online following the introduction of its website over a year ago.

E-mails come in regularly from all over the US and even from Europe, to thank the company for filling a vacuum in the food industry. Fifteen products yet to be outdoored, have been developed. They include three, which are going to be the first of their kind in the market. Brother John says he won’t name them yet for obvious reasons.

In the next two to three years, the company will put up a production plant in Ghana, preferably at Takoradi, to produce fufu powder and pounded yam for export.