The Western Regional Manager of the Produce Buying Company, Mr George Tieku, has stated that the moisture content of the cocoa beans is part of the reasons for having cocoa locked up in various depots in the region. He said although the deplorable roads had added to the problem, the bags of cocoa beans taken to the Quality Control Company (QCC) for grading and sealing were rejected because they did not meet the standard moisture requirement. He said instead of the required 7.5 moisture content, the beans had 8.0, so all the beans deposited at the depots were being re-dried to improve their moisture level. Mr Tieku attributed the situation to the prevailing weather conditions in the area, which made it difficult for the farmers to have consistent sunshine to dry their beans. Mr Tieku was briefing the media during a visit by Mr Joe Gidisu, the Minister of Roads and Highways, to some cocoa-growing areas in the Western Region following reports that bags of cocoa had been locked up because of the bad nature of roads. Mr Tieku also noted that the year recorded a bumper harvest, leading to a situation where farmers did not have adequate drying mats and, therefore, rushed to bag their not-well-dried beans while others had to wait to borrow mat from their colleagues. He, however, appealed to the government to help reconstruct the roads in the area because it was becoming increasingly costly to maintain the vehicles that plied them. Mr Gidisu, in response, pledged the government's commitment to ensuring that the road network in cocoa-growing areas were improved to facilitate easy movement of the produce. He commended the PBC and the cocoa farmers for their role in ensuring that the country was on its feet economically. Among the personalities who accompanied the minister were Mr Michael C. Boampong, Member of Parliament (MP) for Bia, who is also the Chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Roads and Transport, and Mr Stephen Ackah, MP for Suaman. The districts visited included the Bia, Juaboso, Sefwi-Akontombra, Wassa Amenfi East and West districts.