Cocoa production to go up

Ghana’s cocoa production was poised to increase to one million tonnes per year by the year 2010/2011, Mr Isaac Osei, Chief Executive of the Ghana Cocobod has said.
He said major reforms in the cocoa sector aim to boost total production from current levels of around 700,000 tonnes in order to achieve the target.
He said expansion in the cocoa and forestry sub-sectors, policy changes and good weather had in recent years led to improved production, from 300,000 tonnes before year 2001 to 700,000 tonnes currently.
He said the government’s prudent economic policies and support to cocoa farmers would ensure the tremendous increase in production.
Mr Isaac Osei was speaking at a handover ceremony of a new communal sanitation facility built by ADM Cocoa Ghana Limited for residents of Kaase, where Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) Company International is establishing a cocoa processing plant to produce cocoa liquor.
ADM turns crops into renewable products to meet the demands of the growing world. It has more than 240 processing plants around the world that convert corn, oilseeds, wheat and cocoa into products for food, animal feed, chemical and energy uses.
The new communal sanitation building was built by ADM as its first social responsibility project in Kaase where constructional works on the-state-of-the-art cocoa processing plant was still underway.
Mr Jack Sinclair, General Manager of ADM Cocoa Ghana Limited said the communal sanitation building was to help improve the quality of life of the village of Kaase.

He said the factory would offer employment for the youth so that they would not idle about when it was commissioned somewhere in March 2009.
He said when ADM started building its new state-of-the-art cocoa processing plant in Kumasi, it noticed that the neighbouring villages of Kaase on the edge of the site were missing basic hygiene facilities.
“Being new to the area, we thought that providing support to the community was an excellent way to get to know and help our neighbours as a way of exemplifying ADM’s commitment to good citizenship around the world”, explained Pieter Frieling, Deputy General Manager.
“At ADM, we firmly believe that supporting the economic and social development of the communities in which we operate is vital, and is an integral part of our commitment to make the world a better place”, he said.
The Kaasehemaa, Nana Abena Konadu II said the community was pleased to have the new toilet and showering unit adding that the facility would help reduce the risk of disease and increase the quality of life in the village.
She expressed appreciation to Nana Boakye Samuel, Chairman of the Cote d’Ivoire New Patriotic Party Overseas Branch through whose instrumentality ADM was able to secure the Kaase sight.
The communal sanitation facility was handed over to the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) who will have the responsibility to maintain and operate the unit on behalf of the villagers. The area previously used by the village would be landscaped and planted with local tropical vegetation including cocoa trees.

1. The Kaasehemaa, Nana Abena Konadu II (left), Mr Isaac Osei (middle) and Jack Sinclair, General Manager of ADM Cocoa Ghana Limited (extreme right).
2. Inset is the sanitation building.