The CEO of the Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana, Anthony Morrison, has dismissed fears of a tomato shortage in Ghana following Burkina Faso’s suspension of fresh tomato exports.
His comments come amid growing concern following the Sahelian country’s halt to exports to protect its domestic processing industry.
The move has also raised anxiety among Ghanaian traders, especially after some were caught in a terrorist attack in Titao, where several women reportedly lost their lives.
Speaking on Joy News’ PM Express with Evans Mensah, Mr Morrison insisted the situation does not pose a major threat to Ghana’s supply.
“I don’t think there is a challenge… it will interest you to know that actually Burkina Faso’s seed breeding history was from Ghana. they’ve done a lot of collaboration over there,” he said.
Pressed on Ghana’s reliance on tomatoes from Burkina Faso, Mr Morrison pointed instead to changing consumer preferences.
“The thing is about the changing taste of Ghanaian consumers, and what we perceive as quality,” he noted.
When the host argued that Burkina Faso tomatoes dominate on quality grounds, Mr Morrison declined to engage further on that point.
“I don’t want to delve into that,” he said.
He maintained that Ghana’s production capacity, particularly during peak periods, is strong enough to meet local demand.
“Within the major season, Ghana actually, we have sufficient tomatoes. We produce more than Burkina Faso in our major season than Burkina Faso produces in their entire season, both minor and major,” he stated.
