NGO appeals to farmers to apply fertilizer in required quantity

Ms Evelyn Bema Darkwa, Executive Director of the Human Care Maintenance Foundation (HUCAM), a non-governmental organization, has urged farmers to use chemical fertilizers in required  proportion.

She called on the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) to strengthen its relationship with farmers and also ensure that it strictly supervised them in the application of fertilizers to guard against food poisoning.

Speaking to the Ghana News Agency in an interview at Bechem on Thursday, Ms Darkwa said the NGO was working hand-in-hand with farmers in the Tano South District to promote the use of organic manure.

She expressed concern that vegetable farmers in the district applied chemical fertilizers in high quantity, thus poisoning crops and affecting fertility of their land.

Ms Darkwa said because the farmers had no knowledge of the use of fertilizer, they bought chemicals and applied at any how and in a high quantities, assuming that would increase production.

She said 12 agricultural extension officers in the district are not enough to reach all the more than 5,000 farmers and appealed to MOFA to post more extension officers to the area.

Source: GNA