Ghana’s agricultural sector faces a troubling contradiction where abundant harvests have left farmers financially distressed, exposing critical weaknesses in the country’s post-harvest market systems.
More than 100,000 metric tonnes of maize and rice from the 2024 harvest remain unsold, leaving farmers trapped in debt and threatening the survival of local processors. According to think tank IMANI Africa’s recent brief titled “Food Glut in Ghana: When Production Outpaces Market Planning,” the crisis stems not from overfarming but from inadequate foresight in agricultural planning.
The Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana has warned that the glut, worsened by an influx of cheap imports and rampant smuggling of substandard grains, is destabilizing the sector. Many farmers, unable to store their produce or access ready markets, have been forced to sell at prices below production cost, pushing them into financial distress.
IMANI’s analysis argues that Ghana’s agricultural policies have focused almost entirely on boosting production while neglecting what happens after harvest. The think tank notes that whenever production rises, as it did in 2024 under government initiatives to boost staple crop output, the market system struggles to absorb the surplus. Farmers are left with overflowing warehouses, deteriorating produce and mounting debts while buyers remain scarce.
The lack of storage facilities, poor transportation networks and weak coordination between farmers, processors and buyers has created a chain reaction of inefficiency. In farming communities across the Northern, Bono East and Volta Regions, traders are offering farmers prices far below production cost or not showing up at all.
Smuggled maize and rice, which bypass taxes and quality inspections, are being dumped on Ghanaian markets at artificially low prices. CAG cautions that if government fails to act, entire subsectors of the rice and maize industry could collapse. Already, some mills and processing plants are operating far below capacity, while others have shut down completely due to lack of sales.
The Minority in Parliament has demanded the Agriculture Minister’s briefing over the nationwide food glut. In response, Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga disclosed that Cabinet has approved the release of funds to the National Food Buffer Stock Company to purchase the excess produce and stabilize the market.
However, more than 1.3 million metric tonnes of paddy rice are stuck in warehouses due to lack of buyers, according to the Rice Producers Association and Apex Farmers Association. The situation has become so dire that a committee representing multiple farmer associations has threatened to boycott the 2025 Farmer’s Day celebration across all levels if the government doesn’t take immediate action.
IMANI warns that unless government shifts its focus from production targets to market systems, Ghana will continue experiencing such wasteful gluts. The think tank recommends a stronger national framework for storage, processing and coordinated marketing, as well as tightened border management to protect local producers.
The analysis signals that unless production policies are complemented with post-harvest planning, the outcome will always be waste. If Ghana wants to achieve food security and self-sufficiency, it must treat post-harvest management and market linkages with the same urgency as production itself.
