Over 50,000 farmers to receive free high-yielding hybrid cocoa seedlings

Over 50 million cocoa high-yielding hybrid seedlings are expected to be distributed to over 50,000 farmers nationwide, beginning 2016, to help boost crop yield within the next three years, Ghana Cocoa Board (Cocobod) has told B&FT.

The early-maturing seedlings, which have been treated to resist swollen shoot disease and establish pest control, will  be targetted at intensifying farm treatment exercises, rehabilitating farms and replanting old tree stock farms, all aimed at raising annual output of the crop by appreciable levels.

Mr. Albert Akomaning, Deputy Technical Manager, Cocoa Health & Extension Division, Cocobod, in an interview explained that the exercise is expected to help raise annual output to some 1.5 million tonnes within the next five years. 

Cocobod has projected a production target of 850,000 metric tonnes for the 2014-2015 cocoa crop season. 

He said the Board, as of last month, has supplied about 39.5million cocoa seedlings to restock old cocoa farms to increase crop output. The new seedlings are tolerant of pests and diseases, including the black pod disease and mireds; yield early, and can also withstand harsh climatic conditions.

 “We are waiting for the raining season to resume by October so we can continue with free distribution of the cocoa seedlings,” he said.

Explaining how cocoa farmers can access the seedlings, Mr. Akomaning explained that interested people need to register with the board through its licenced extension officers working in the various communities.

The registration, he said, will take into account the farm size, type of farm -- new or established ones -- as well as the quantity of seedlings the person requires.

This year’s exercise will ensure that all registered cocoa farmers in the country receive free hybrid seedlings.  "We have enough seedlings for everybody, no matter the size of the farm involved. All you need is to register."

Undoubtedly, there have been widespread observations that the country’s cocoa tree stock is over-aged and therefore calls have been made for a mass strategy for their replacement to ensure maximum output levels in the coming years and sustain production lines. 

If steps are not taken to replace the trees with free hybrid seedlings, production targets will not be met in the next few years. The old trees are also at greater risk of being attacked by diseases and pests which have the tendency of reducing crop yields.

The majority cocoa tree stock is over 60-years while some are over 100-years. 

The International Cocoa Organisation (ICCO) has forecasted that it is confident Ghana's cocoa production will rise in the 2015/16 season, following a drop of some 20 percent this season to around 700,000 tonnes.

Ghana runs a two-cycle cocoa season consisting of the October-June main crop harvest that is mainly exported, and the July-September light crop which is discounted to local grinders.

Cocoa is considered to be the highest export crop earner for the country, accounting for 8.2 percent of the country’s GDP and 30 percent of total export earnings in 2010.

Ghana’s cocoa output peaked at over one million tonnes in the 2010/11 crop season, only to drop to 850,000 tonnes.

Although the Board has been working at increasing the yield levels, challenges such as pests and diseases, low-yielding crops and harsh climatic conditions continue to hamper that objective.

The country's cocoa farms have an average yield level of about 450 to 500 kilogrammes per hectare (kg per ha), while the new seedlings have a yield capacity level of between 1,000 and 1,500kg per ha.