Guinness Ghana Breweries Limited (GGBL) Ghana’s leading total beverage business and a subsidiary of Diageo PLC has rewarded deserving sorghum farmers and aggregators in the Upper East and Upper West Regions at a recognition and appreciation event held in Tamale.

GGBL has been using sorghum since 2008 in the production of its premium brands such as Guinness Foreign Extra Stout, Malta Guinness and Top malt.

The company also uses maize and cassava in its brewing processes part of its local raw materials initiative to substitute imported raw material for locally produced raw material which will develop a strong sustainable supply chain and create employment for many Ghanaians within the chain.

Francis Agbonlahor, Managing Director of GGBL said “GGBL is currently about 48% of local raw materials used in our production. As an international business, we have seen at firsthand in our other businesses especially in East Africa how the right government policies can transform the local value chain.

That is why I am pleased on the intervention by government on planting for food and jobs programme which I am positive will transform both the agricultural and manufacturing industries.

For such a laudable policy to succeed, all players need to step change our thinking and actions. We cannot continue to do things the same way and expect the required transformation so government policies, agronomical practices and industrial practices and technologies must equate our ambition to transform”.

Delivering the keynote address, Dr. Sagre Bambangi, Deputy Minister of Food and Agriculture applauded Guinness Ghana for their local raw material initiative.

He said “As a government, we know and understand that majority of Ghanaian farmers are into subsistence farming. The ambition of our government to significantly transform the agriculture sector and we need our farmers to start thinking and moving towards commercial farming to ensure there is sustainable livelihood improvement in the lives of these farmers.

"To make this happen, the appropriate policies must be developed and implemented. It is for this reason why the NPP government developed the bespoke Planting for Food and Jobs programme which is expected to increase the production of maize by 30 percent; rice by 49 percent; soybean by 25 per cent; and sorghum by 28 per cent from current production levels. It is also expected to create 750,000 jobs in both direct and indirect employment by making available the right agricultural inputs and agronomical practices”.

A total of ten (10) categories were rewarded with Seidu Dinko and Banong-yengKyiwiehrecognised for being the best farmers in the Upper East and Upper West Regions respectively. They all took home motor cycles and assorted products from GGBL.

Faranaya Limited located in the Upper East region as recognised as the best aggregator with a thresher worth GHC 22,000.00to support their work with farmers and products from GGBL.