Asian African Consortium launches Jospong rice to boost Ghana’s agriculture

GHANA – The Asian African Consortium (AAC), a subsidiary of the Jospong Group of Companies, has introduced Jospong Rice, its first indigenous rice brand, into the Ghanaian market.

This significant development, announced during Agrifest 2024 in Accra, represents a major step in Ghana’s efforts to enhance local rice production and reduce dependency on imports.

Dr. Bryan Acheampong, Minister of Food and Agriculture, praised the initiative, calling Jospong Rice “authentic Ghanaian rice.” He emphasized its potential to transform the agricultural landscape while providing nutritious, high-quality products for consumers.

The AAC has built partnerships with agrochemical suppliers, financial institutions, and government agencies to sustain this effort.

Additionally, the organization is investing in mechanization, farmer training, and advanced seed varieties to improve productivity. These efforts not only cater to the rising local demand but also position Ghana to cut rice imports in the country.

Rice is the second most consumed cereal after maize in Ghana. Additionally, rice is fast emerging as a strategic cash crop and an economic tool for the Ghanaian population even though the country still imports more than 60% of its local needs.

Jospong Rice represents a critical milestone in addressing this demand sustainably while reducing the financial burden of imports.

Mrs. Adelaide Agyepong, AAC CEO, highlighted the consortium’s goal of building resilient food systems, stating, “With Jospong Rice, we are taking a significant step towards ensuring Ghana’s food future.”

Last year, Jospong Group of Companies, challenged Ghana to ban rice importation and become self-sufficient in production.

Dr. Joseph Siaw Adjepong, the Chairman of the Jospong Group of Companies made the plea while speaking at a two-day Ghana Food Security Conference 2023 themed “Enhancing food security: The role of Ghanaian scientists” at Gomoa Fetteh in the Central Region.

According to Dr Adjepong, Baning imports as a strategy to increase local production has been used by Nigeria which Ghana can learn from the experience and become self-sufficient in rice.

“If Nigeria has done it, we can do it, let’s not reinvent the wheel, let’s copy from them,” he appealed

He revealed that Nigeria, after banning the importation of rice, has made remarkable progress in rice production during the previous decade, surpassing Egypt with a yearly production of 5.8 million tonnes.

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