Field Day

Participants in the 5th West African organic Conference (WAOC), to be held in Accra, Ghana from 12th-15th of November 2019, will have the opportunity to visit organic farms in the country. The field visits will take place on November 15, 2019. Ghana’s tropical climate and vast savannah and forest lands provides a conducive advantage for organic farming. Seven interesting organic farms, made up of crops, aquaculture and livestock farms, have been lined up to be visited by conference participants.

The field visits are in line with the conference’s objective of exploring and showcasing the potentials of organic agriculture in the transformation of national and regional economies, ecologies and livelihoods through income growth, climate change adaptation, food sovereignty and trade.

It is also to showcase what organic farmers are doing to facilitate the sharing of knowledge, information, experiences and
skills among all stakeholders in the organic sector especially among West-African

farmers and their national and sub-regional representations. Briefs on the farms selected to be visited by conference participants below:

Ideal Providence Farm is an organic agriculture farm and its core business is the

agro-production of organic fruits, vegetables, spices, herbs and food stuffs. The farm processes herbs into teas and also extracts oils from its produce. These are packaged for the local and international markets. Some of the farm produce include Lemon, lemon grass, lime, citronella grass, bitter orange and rosella, among others. Ideal Providence has other farms in the Eastern and Volta Regions of Ghana. Its herbs and tea farm located in a green and serene community in the Eastern Region of Ghana is one of the farms to be
visited by delegates to the 5th West African Organic Conference during the field day visits on November 15. The farm covers a land area of 40 acres, and it is an hour and thirty minutes’ drive from Accra. Ideal Providence Farms, Ghana has an organically Certified food brand called KROMS. All the farms’ products are produced under strict hygienic conditions and are organically certified by Control Union Certification, NL-Zwolle. KROMS has been growing and producing its raw materials for almost 15 years. IPF adheres to strict production regulations and employs internationally certified organic farming standards. In 2014, IPF was awarded the Greater Accra Regional Best Farmer” award in the 30th edition of the Ghana National Farmers Day Awards. Georgina Koomson, Owner of Ideal Providence Farms (IPF), will welcome delegates.

Volta Presentation is a dynamic agribusiness organic farm located at Sogakope, a town in the Volta Region of Ghana known mostly for its river tourism and Mass bread production. Volta Presentation is a leader in producing superfoods like Ginger, Moringa and Soursop among others. It is also well known

for medicinal crops production and

Guaman Infusions Herbal teas.
Nadia Zeine is the Executive Director of Volta Presentation Farm. She strongly believes in the power of sustainable agriculture and its value as a solution to poverty, food security and peace. The farm is 2hr 30 Mins drive from Accra and a great
farm to visit and she and her team are excited about the visit by conference participants

At the outskirts of Nsawam, in the Eastern Region of Ghana, lies the serene Peace Haven organic livestock farm. An hour’s drive will take visitors to this organic

livestock farm. It has a water body developed as a fish farm. Currently, the farm stocks cows, goats, pigs, and rabbits. Dr. De Fenzy Schandorf, the owner of the farm has immense plans for the farm to produce meat and fish for organic food lovers. The farm is well laid out and very pleasing to see. It has shade trees and vast space for relaxation. This is another must see farm during the conference

Lush Swedru Ghana Limited is a unique and refreshing organic farm designed with a variety of crops cultivated in a very natural setting. Walking into the farm at first sight presents a picture of wild growth until you get into it and see a pleasant mix of crops in this very lush and beautiful wild setting. Lush Swedru Farm grows and processes Ylang Ylang, vanilla, patchouli, lemon grass, citronella grass, orange and Jasmin.The Director Merjim Groen has several years’ experience in the world of plant and trees and the business around it. The Director Merjim Groen has several years’ experience in the world of plant and trees and the business around it.

Led by a duo of aquatics and tech hobbyists, Kingsley Safo and Fredrick Kpamber, BIO GREEN AGRO is impacting organic farming with its ‘ECO-

AQUAPONICS’ Systems which thrive on controlled symbiotic algae cultivation for improved agriculture practices. The farm is an off-grid solar powered farm that is engaged in down-to-earth Controlled Aquatics Research. For over five years, Bio Green Agro has been pursuing innovations towards achieving healthier eco-sensitive agro-systems with the highest efficiency and conservation possible.
The Farm’s modules are designed to self-cultivate a lot of natural food that Tilapia require especially super nutritious tropical algae including Spirulina and also aquatic
nutrition like Water Hyacinth, Duckweed, Plankton among others

These constitute at least 90% of daily fish diet for Bio Green Agro’s tilapia fish farm. These rich natural veggie diets are what make their algae biofertilizer liquid concentrate, a great natural restorative soil nutrient solution which is known to

generally outperform synthetic fertilizers for field crops. Organic and non-organic Farmers who have tried applying the super nutritious tropical algae, have been highly delighted at the positive impact on the growth of their farms so far! Bio Green Agro is, indeed, developing super high efficiency Aquaponics based nutrition solutions designed especially for the realities and challenges of the West Africa region including the tough Sahel areas and will be taking participants through the process.

In Suhum, a township in the Eastern Region of Ghana, two hours’ drive away from Accra, is an organic cocoa farmer cooperative producing high Quality Organic and Fairtrade Cocoa Beans. Indeed when the cocoa pod is cut open, its rich juicy fruit attest to the quality of the fruit. ABOCFA is one of the Organic/Fair Trade farmer cooperatives in Ghana. There are about 700 farmer including female
farmers within the ABOCFA network, from 13 villages in the community.

Stephen Ashia manager of the cooperative Association is ready to share with conference participants,

what the cooperative

farmers are doing and the premium prices they earn through the production of organic cocoa. ABOCFA farms presents an organic

cocoa farming experience worth seeing.

In the green countryside of Sogakope, a township in the Volta Region, lies a unique

project known as the “Sogakope Restoration Village Agro-forestry project”. The architect of the project, Prince Ben Israel, believes that rural development should be built from an estate perspective. In maintaining the village environment in the form of an

estate, communities can be more productive from the soil, in terms of feeding themselves and being sustainable. They can also feed industries in the rural

areas. This will generate sustainable income for those living in the rural areas instead of the youth migrating to the cities in search of non-existing jobs.

The restoration village has cultivated tree crops and fruits such as plantains, banana, pawpaw, breadfruit, jack fruit, sour sap and cashew among others. 70 acres of land have been secured for the farm and it is being cropped systematically.

The layout is also being planned to give a pleasing feel to visitors and for the farmers themselves to enjoy its beauty. The Restoration village is 2 ½ hours’ drive from Accra, and it is a must see project