Ghanaian Farmers begin fight against GMO’S Plan to collapse initiative in Ghana By Kwabena Adu Koranteng Farmers is Ghana have said they will not assist government or any foreign organizations to influence them with genetically modified seedlings. A survey conducted by this reporter in some parts of the Eastern Region of Ghana, specifically, the Akuapem Hills, Nsawam, and Nsuhum indicates that farmers are abreast with issues related to genetically modified foods and its effects on their lives and future. Speaking to some of them on a three day round survey they claim their refusal to accept the GM seedling is based on the fact that GM seedlings are planted only ones and they could not store and replant seedlings from same harvest. “Since the days of our great great grand fathers, there has been a cycle of us replanted seeds from our previous harvest. It saves us a lot of money from buying new seedlings. However with the new seedlings you can only plant once and cannot store seeds again for replant. You need to buy a new seed from the market”. Stated Raphael Osae, a maize farmer at Nankesi, near Suhum in the eastern region . “This is a strategy by the government and the seed developers to rake money from the poor farmers every season since we would have to buy the seeds from them every season to plant”, according to Nana Kwasi Ansah, mixed farmers at Nkurakan, near Adukrom in the eastern region in a separate interview. Nana Kwasi Ansah is also the traditional head of the Nkurakan farmers association “We will make sure the project being undertaken in Ghana is halted we will not patronize the seedlings. We will continue with our traditional practices. We know that they will subsidize these seedlings but we will not buy them when they are given to us for free, we will take them and destroy them because if we don’t take care the seedlings can destroy the fertility of our land”, he added . In his submission, Opaning Kojo Mensah, a mixed farmer at Nsawam in the eastern region said GM seedlings are supposed planted in drought prone countries like Sudan Ethiopia Namibia and the northern parts of the Sahara. “Ghana has vast arable lands and we don’t need GMO’S to survive. We will destroy the plants when they give them to us for free; when they sell we will not buy. If they hide them from us definitely we will be able to identify them at the market. If they think they are smart we are smarter than them, he stated firmly. Meanwhile, The Deputy Director of Food Sovereignty, Ghana (FSG), a non-governmental organization (NGO) concerned with food safety issues, Mr Duke Tagoe, has appealed to Ghanaians to kick against the introduction of genetically modified organism (GMO) food and seeds into the country. This is because it will deprive Ghanaians of their means of livelihood since the government would have to import all seeds from Monsanto, the international company responsible for the production of the GMOs, instead of local seed growers. The GMOs, he said, would bring untold hardship to Ghanaian farmers and the economy if Ghanaians allowed the Western world to dump such unprofitable food products and seeds on Ghana. Mr Tagoe said the GMOs were associated with heart diseases, fibroid, diabetes, cancers, among others and as such, they were not good for human consumption. On the effect GMOs had on farmers, he said, “Ghanaian farmers would be poorer since there has not been any documented evidence that there will be improved yield”. He also mentioned that in places where farmers had cultivated GMO seeds, they spent more money on pesticides, thus debunking the idea that the GMOs controlled pest infestation. On the effect of GMOs on the economy, Mr Tagoe said the country would lose a lot of revenue in the importation of GMO seeds. According to him, Ghana had the benefit of learning from countries such as India and South Africa, that had already introduced GMO foods and even Europe that had banned GMO foods.“India today has regretted using genetically modified foods because the GM foods have not brought them any benefits,” Mr Tagoe said.
Posted on: Fri, 18 Oct 2013 11:49:38 +0000
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