11 November 2008
A total of 230 hectares of sunflower farms located at Tumu, Walewale, Mpaha and Damongo in the northern part of the country, and Agona Asafo near Agona Swedru in the Central Region are ready to feed the a sunflower bio-diesel factory that would begin production in January 2009.
The Chief Executive Officer, Tropical Agricultural Marketing and Consultancy Service (TRAGRIMACS) Sunflower Ghana, Mr. Issah Sulemana, disclosed this to newsmen after conducting them round to inspect the 45 hectare Sunflower farm at Agona Asafo in the Central Region.
He was accompanied by Mr. George Ortsin, Project Coordinator of Global Environmental Facility/Small Grant Project (GEF/SGP) under the United Nations Development Project (UNDP), which is funding the project.
Mr Sulemana told newsmen that the equipment for the establishment of the first sunflower bio-diesel project in the country, which cost 25,000 US dollar, has already arrived in the country. The factory would be sited at Tema.
Mr. Sulemana said due to high crude oil prices on the world market, Ghana needs to find an alternative source of cheap fuel and therefore encouraged the financial institutions to assist farmers to go into sunflower production on a large scale.
He said the purpose for the establishment of the project is to produce bio-diesel from a local crop to mitigate climate change.
He appealed to farmers to go into sunflower cultivations because it has ready market locally, adding that the crop is drought resistant and economical viable as compared with other crops.
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i have a large hectors of land that i want to go into sunflower production. This is my contact details:
Email: bbboalee@yahoo.co.uk tel: +233(0)244637395
i want to know where to get the sunflower seeds for production.
thank you.
best regards
Benjamin Bimpong.