Akuapem Gold Avocado Cultivation and Processing Limited, is set to start processing oil from avocado as well as export the raw fruit beginning September this year.

That is an assurance from the Management of the company registered under the One District-One Factory (1D1F)
Initiative.

The factory located in the Eastern region, has the capacity to produce 110 metric tonnes of avocado oil and package 300-400 metric tonnes of avocado fruit per day for export.

It has already nursed more than 2 million avocado seedlings for its farms located in the Fanteakwa North District.

The nursery, located on a two-acre land at Nkronso in the Abuakwa South Municipality in the Eastern Region, according to its Management, is one of the largest in the sub-region.

The company has more than 28,000 acres of land bank and is targeting an avocado plantation of about 25,000 acres in the next five years.

According to the Chairman of the company, Alfred Kwame Wilson, it takes three to five years for avocado to start fruiting, but due to best agronomic practices, some of the trees have started fruiting in less than three years.

"We have a huge land area already under cultivation. Usually avocado takes three to five years to start fruiting but the best agronomic practices we have put in place coupled with the ‘Hass’ variety we acquired from Kenya, has made it possible for us to start fruiting in less than two years and this is an indication of the good investments we making here," he stated.

Beyond the production of avocado oil and fresh fruits export, the company will produce avocado drinks, animal feed, and medicinal products among others.

Mr Richard Baidoo, a Chief Agronomist, stated that local varieties are grafted alongside to protect the 'Hass' variety adopted from Kenya.

He explained that, "we are cultivating the 'Hass' variety of avocado from Kenya because in the global avocado industry that has the most superior characteristics and in terms of oil-to-seed ratio, it is very high. The fruit is not as big as our local variety but the seed inside is huge and the oil content in the seed is the highest. So, every commercial entity will be interested in optimizing their oil extraction rate and that is why we borrowed from the Kenyans".