Local food prices will in the coming months witness a significant increase if current Ukraine –Russia situation does not see any improvement, this is according to the Peasant Framers Association of Ghana.
Explaining the situation to Citi Business News, the peasant farmers said fertilizer supply which is already a challenge in the country will become even more scarce given the fact that Russia accounts for 21% of the global potash market, a key component used in producing fertilizer.
Framers in the country have since October last year lamented the impact of the shortage of fertilizer on their activities and have called on the government to intervene.
The fertilizer industry has witnessed a number of challenges in the past year and a half. One major reason for this has been the COVID-19 pandemic which came with increased production costs and trade limitations. Currently, producers are looking at potential price impacts from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Russia accounts for 21% of the global potash market a key component used in the production of fertilizer.
Already the Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana has warned of an imminent increase in food prices in the country due to rising prices of fertilizer worldwide and has called on the government to intervene in the situation.
In an interview with Citi Business News, President of the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana, Charles Nyaaba said consumers must be prepared to pay more for foodstuff considering the current fertilizer supply situation.
“Global developments have already impacted on our food situation, so if you look at the food supply for 2022, you realize that there is limited supply in almost all food commodities, talk of maize, talk of soya, talk of sorghum, almost all food commodities that we depend on input from the global market. This is because COVID hit some of the fertilizer producing countries and the machinery supplying countries so we couldn’t get the supply that we needed. As we speak, there is a shortage of fertilizer in the market”.
He added, “I am currently in Upper East, yesterday I met farmers who are doing dry season rice and they are complaining that they are not even getting fertilizer to buy for their crops. Now our fear is that with this Ukraine and Russia crisis where countries are imposing sanctions on Russia it is likely to affect the supply of Potash which is used in the production of NPK fertilizer. So since Russia is a key supplier of that product that is globally used for the production of fertilizer and natural gas, it is going to escalate the difficulties we have in fertilizer production”.
