Ghana has capacity
to produce mushroom on international scale
Kumasi (Ashanti
Region) 04 November 2002- The Chief Executive Officer of the Mushroom and
Grasscutter Production, John Yaw Asubonteng has said that Ghana had the
capacity to produce the fleshy fungi on international scale.
He said Ghana was
endowed with the natural resources to produce mushrooms for the international
market but the realisation that this could be done was lacking. Asubonteng was
speaking at a five-day workshop on mushroom and grasscutter production, for
members of the Kumasi branch of the Mushroom and Grasscutter Producers
Association in Kumasi at the weekend.
The workshop was
organised by the Food Research Institute of Ghana (FORIG) of the Council for
Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in collaboration with the Mushroom
and Grasscutter Producers.
It was aimed at
sensitise participants on the scientific and modern methods of mushroom and
grasscutter production to enable them to produce not only for local consumption
but also for export.
Asubonteng said Africa
accounted for only one per cent of the $30bn dollars that was earned from the
world production of fleshy fungi fleshy fungi. He, therefore, appealed to
farmers in the country to intensify their efforts to produce more mushrooms
that would be accepted internally.
Richard K. Takli, a
Senior Micro-biologist of the FORIG, said although Ghana was lacking behind in
the production of mushrooms internationally, farmers could be encouraged to
produce more.
He suggested the
granting of a patent right to farmers who produce mushrooms saying that this
could encourage the farmers to produce more and would also enable the country
to earn more foreign exchange.
GRi…/
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