Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) operating in Ghana's food processing sector have been urged to adopt available food processing technologies, but greater support is needed to help them acquire the equipment required to put these innovations into practice.

Director of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research Food Research Institute, Prof. Charles Tortoe, made the call while speaking on the Super Morning Show.

According to him, research institutions have already developed several technologies aimed at improving food value addition and enhancing the efficiency of food processing activities.

However, he noted that the ability of SMEs to utilize these technologies largely depends on their access to the necessary processing equipment.

“At the end of the food value addition, we have generated the technologies. These technologies are available. SMEs must take up these technologies,” he stated.

Prof. Tortoe explained that equipment such as dehydrators and other processing machinery are essential for transforming agricultural produce into value-added products.

However, the high cost of acquiring such equipment remains a major challenge for many small businesses.

“But SMEs also need support in terms of processing equipment. They must get a dehydrator for some of their activities. Then it comes with costs. They must also get other processing equipment. All comes with costs,” he said.

He stressed that food processing cannot be done effectively without the appropriate machinery, describing equipment as a critical component of any successful processing operation.

“In processing, you can’t do without equipment, and these equipment are expensive,” he added.

The CSIR-FRI Director therefore called for targeted interventions to help SMEs access and finance processing equipment, arguing that such support would enable more businesses to adopt existing technologies, improve productivity and expand food value addition in the country.

He noted that increasing support for agro-processors would not only enhance the competitiveness of SMEs but also contribute to reducing post-harvest losses and strengthening Ghana’s agricultural value chain.