Grapevine

Ban on grain export a knee-jeck reaction

The Chairman and Chief Executive of the Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana, Anthony Kofituo Morrison, has criticised the government's decision to ban the exportation of grain.

He described the ban as a "knee-jerk reaction" arguing that it was unnecessary.

Speaking in an interview on Joy FM’s Top Story, Mr. Morrison argued that the available data on grains does not justify the ban.

"We at the Chamber find the ban a bit unnecessary. We think it is a knee-jerk reaction from the government. If you look at the data the government is presenting, we are importing 300,000 metric tonnes of maize and 150,000 metric tonnes of rice.

"Our national consumption for maize is around 3.2 million metric tonnes, with a deficit of about 900,000 metric tonnes. For rice, the consumption is around 1.92 million metric tonnes, with a deficit of nearly 1 million metric tonnes," he explained.