Coffee farmers in the Eastern region are losing out on revenue as they are unable to hull harvested coffee.

The only hulling machine in the region has been faulty for the past eight years, a reason the farmers are selling unhulled coffee for GH ¢350 per 65 kilogrammes, though they could be earning double the amount.

Hulling is the process in which husk is removed from the coffee seed.

Ghana is known as the world’s second largest cocoa producer, however it is ranked as the third smallest coffee producer in sub-Saharan Africa.

In 2019, the country exported 600 tonnes of coffee which was a decline from the 12,250 tonnes recorded in 2015.

Visiting one of the biggest coffee plantations in Bepong, a suburb of the Kwahu district in the Eastern region, Seidu Ansomana, the farm manager decries their inability to earn as much due to the lack of a hulling machine.

He reveals that if the machine wasn’t faulty, they would have unhulled about 50 bags of coffee daily.

The farm manager also stated that due to this, they could only cultivate 300 acres of land though the land is about a 1000 acres.

According to Mr. Ansomana, they are partnering with the government to implement the ‘Planting for Export and Rural Development (PERD)’ where coffee seeds are given out for free to small scale farmers. However, he indicated that the government is neglecting their needs as termites invade the farm.

He said despite constant complaints made to the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), nothing has been done about the pests infestations of the farm.