The General Secretary of the General Agricultural Workers Union, Edward Kareweh, is warning of a likely food shortage in the country in the near future due to a reduction in the production of food by farmers.
According to him, farmers in the country have reduced the size of their farms due to the rising cost of farm inputs such as fertilisers and pesticide, leading to a reduction in the general production of foodstuffs in the country.
Speaking in an interview with Joy Business, he also mentioned that some farmers have resulted to reducing the size of their farms due to the high costs of agricultural inputs and this is hampering production.
He cautioned that this could lead to hikes in prices of foodstuff in the various markets.
“The demand for food will continue to go up so if you cut down your farm size then it means that your output will be low and if it is low and the demand is high, it will push prices up so this is inevitable”, he mentioned.
Mr. Kareweh again warned that if critical measures are not taken to address the challenges that the sector is bereft with, the country’s food security systems could be threatened.
“We may not see the full effect of it until in the future. We can give ourselves in the next five years we will see the full effect of it”.
“Until we take steps now, we may in the future be faced with very serious food shortage”, he said.
He added that farmers need to be encouraged to expand their cultivation and increase their production to meet demands.
Source: Myjoyonline
