Popular Ghanaian actor now politician on the tickets of the NDC, John Dumelo has said the government attempt to encourage it’s citizens consume local rice will become fruitless if nothing is done about the cost of local rice.
According to the actor and father of one, foreign imported rice are far cheaper than local rice even after paying all import duties and shipping charges. He stressed further that, Ghanaians will go back to the consumption of imported rice if nothing is done about the pricing.
“It will Interest you to know that imported rice( after paying all the shipping and duties at the port) is still cheaper than our local rice. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a farmer and a huge advocate for consumption of made in Ghana products but the patriotic patience of Ghanaians will quickly run out if our local rice farmers don’t do anything about their pricing. Same as our local chicken and the imported one. Once it’s cheap, it’s the best. It might not be the fault of the farmers when pricing. The unit cost of producing a bag of rice depends on external factors(high interest rates, taxes, fuel costs etc) which is beyond their control. We must do more to support farmers across the country. Competitive pricing and branding are sine qua non to Ghanaians being patriotic but all hope is not lost. Ghana shall prosper.“
