Farm-Gate Prices at Efua Sutherland Children’s Park: Will Policymakers Just Buy and Leave or Finally Listen?

Ghana’s persistent food inflation has intensified public concern over the cost of living, with market prices for staple foods rising to levels many households can no longer sustain. From tomatoes to onions, yams to garden eggs, prices continue to climb, often tripling by the time produce reaches urban markets. The food economy, for both consumers and producers, is under immense strain.

While global factors such as fuel hikes and currency fluctuations play a role, analysts and farmers alike argue that domestic inefficiencies within the country’s food value chain remain a more pressing culprit. The journey from the farm to the plate, marked by poor infrastructure, inadequate storage, and unchecked middlemen activity, has become a key driver of the price distortions affecting households across the country.

The good news is here: an unprecedented initiative is, from June 20th to 22nd, AgriFair 2025, organized by Channel One TV in collaboration with Citi FM and Citi TV, will bring fresh agricultural produce directly from farms into the capital. The produce will be sold at farm-gate prices, reflecting the true cost of food at the point of harvest, without the inflated margins often added by intermediaries.

The event is expected to attract senior government officials, including ministers of agriculture, trade, and local government, as well as development partners, NGOs, and industry players. While such attendance is not unusual for major trade fairs, this year’s edition carries a deeper purpose. For many farmers and market traders involved, the event is not just an exhibition, but a demonstration, an opportunity to present firsthand the real dynamics behind Ghana’s food price crisis.

For years, farmers across the country have voiced concerns that remain largely unresolved. Feeder roads in many food-producing regions are either impassable or severely damaged, making transportation slow, unreliable, and costly. Perishable produce often spoils before reaching the market, due to a lack of cold storage facilities and efficient logistics. Even where food does make it to the cities, prices skyrocket, not because of scarcity, but due to the long chain of markups between producer and final seller.

Farmers also point to the soaring cost of inputs, particularly fertilizer, feed, and pesticides, as major deterrents to sustained production. With limited access to subsidies and little support for mechanization, many smallholders operate at a loss, scaling down or abandoning farms altogether. Post-harvest losses remain high, and access to formal markets is inconsistent, especially for rural producers without organized cooperatives or guaranteed buyers.

Despite these challenges, Ghana continues to import significant quantities of rice, poultry, tomatoes, and other food staples, products that could otherwise be produced locally, given the country’s favourable agroecological conditions. Many stakeholders have long called for a more coherent national food strategy, one that empowers farmers not just to grow food, but to sell it fairly and efficiently.

AgriFair 2025 aims to make that conversation unavoidable. By selling produce at farm-gate prices in the heart of Accra, the organizers hope to expose the stark contrast between what food is actually worth at the farm and what consumers are forced to pay in the market. For some urban shoppers, the experience will come as a relief. For policymakers, it is intended to be a reckoning.

Organizers of the event say the presence of government officials must translate into more than symbolic appearances. While ribbon cuttings and public remarks have become familiar at such events, stakeholders are urging a different kind of engagement, one in which ministers spend time listening to farmers and understanding their specific needs.

The fair, they argue, should be seen not as a celebration, but as a call to action. It offers the government a rare opportunity to gather direct feedback from producers and traders, and to begin shaping policies that reflect the lived realities of Ghana’s agricultural sector.

Some analysts say the event could serve as a launchpad for larger policy reforms, particularly around reducing post-harvest losses, supporting agro-processing, and strengthening local supply chains to reduce Ghana’s reliance on imported food.

Ultimately, the success of AgriFair 2025 may be judged not by the quantity of food sold, but by the quality of conversations had, and what is done with them after the tents come down. Ghana’s farmers are bringing their best to the capital: not only their yams and tomatoes, but their stories, their frustrations, and their solutions.

Whether the country’s leaders will bring more than protocol remains to be seen.

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