Agriculture Booms But Food Prices Surge; Economist Insists Situation Calls for Deeper Probe

In a very welcoming development, Ghana’s agriculture sector saw a very remarkable growth in the first quarter of 2025, recording a growth of a whopping 6.6%. Ironically, this boom does not reflect in the prices of food on the market as food inflation remains elevated.

Latest GDP data published by the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) reveal that the Agricultural sector, with the support of the Services sector, was the main driver of the 5.3% growth of the economy.

Moreover, within the Agriculture sector, two subsectors, crops and livestock, recorded remarkable growth, seeing 6.7% and 5.6% growth during the period under review.

This growth in Agriculture comes on the back of significant expenditure by the government in the areas of irrigation, seeds, extension services, etc.

However, despite a strong showing by Ghana’s agricultural sector in the first quarter of 2025, food prices remain uncomfortably high, raising urgent questions about the disconnect between production gains and market realities.

The latest GSS data on Consumer Price Index (CPI) reveals that food inflation stood at 22.8%. This is 4.4 percentage points higher than the overall inflation of the country, which currently stands at 18.4%.

Interestingly, per the GSS data, everyday food items such as yam, ginger, herring, plantain, among others, were the main drivers of the food inflation.

This boom in agriculture hasn’t translated into a relief in food prices on the market for consumers. Food inflation remains high, and the cost of staples continues to strain household budgets.

The situation has gotten some economists talking.

For instance, an Economist at the University of Ghana, Prof. Peter Quartey, believes the disconnect requires deeper investigation. Although he welcomes the remarkable growth in agriculture, especially in the crops subsector, he believes the authorities must dig deeper to find the reasons behind the ironic situation.

“It was quite striking to see Agric performing quite well. Agricultural growth was 6.6%, much higher than the 2.9% recorded same period last year. And the crop sector, I mean, if you dig a bit, you realise that crops also did quite well, but it’s quite surprising that food prices still remain high despite the growth in crops production,” the Director of the Institute of Statistical Social and Economic Research (ISSER) of the University of Ghana remarked.

He therefore suggested that, “It means we need to investigate what is causing these high food prices on the market. Is it transportation, or what exactly is the cause? And I think that’s where we need to dive into some of these issues.”

The irony of a flourishing agricultural sector coexisting with high food prices points to underlying inefficiencies in Ghana’s food supply chain.

Experts such as Prof. Quartey say it’s time for policymakers to look beyond production figures and assess the full journey from the farm to the homes.

Although Ghana can celebrate the remarkable growth in one of its most crucial sectors, however, failure to translate the gains into relief for Ghanaians makes the success “meaningless.”

The challenge ahead is for the government to ensure that increased output leads not just to stronger GDP numbers, but to affordable food for all.

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