Too Much of a Good Thing
Published by Trevor Whitney on Tuesday, February 26, 2008 at 3:07 AM.
There’s nothing like an ice cold slice of watermelon on a hot day. Whenever I eat watermelon it reminds of being a kid again: running around in the backyard in the summer with friends having seed spitting competitions. Those fond memories have been coming back a lot lately as its watermelon season here in Ghana.
Farmers plant watermelon seeds at the start of the dry season, around the end of December. They grow it in the low-lying areas on the river banks after the water level recedes. Despite the name, ironically watermelon doesn’t require much water to grow. I still haven’t quite figured that one out seeing the stuff is like 99% water, but apparently so long as there is enough moisture in the soil during germination it will grow just fine.
[Watermelon field picture]
After the devastating drought and flood that struck the region, resulting in complete crop failure during the rainy season, farmers saw watermelon as an opportunity to make some desperately needed money during the usually unproductive dry season. They hoped that by producing watermelon, which in the past has fetched a good price at the market, they would be able to earn enough money to feed their families when their current food stocks soon run out.
The result, literally mountains of watermelon...
[Fresh watermelon picture]
It’s like some childhood fantasy of being in a fruity version of Candyland, but the fantasy soon fades to tragedy when you start asking what the watermelon is doing sitting out here in the fields rather than being consumed by hot thirsty children in town. With so many more farmers than usual going into watermelon farming the market is flooded. Most of the watermelon has been harvested and sits rotting on the roadside waiting for a buyer. The farmers try and pile it underneath trees so that the shade will keep cooler, but if they don’t sell it soon it will be too late.
[Rotting watermelon picture]
One of the biggest tragedies is that I know there is a market for the produce. The farther south you go the higher the price. Farmgate: 0.20-0.30 GHc. WaleWale (district capital) 0.50-0.80 GHc. Tamale 1-2 GHc. Accra 5-6 GHc.
People have different perceptions of the situation. One farmer I met is upset because his community has been growing watermelon for a few years. This year however a village closer to the main road has also grown, and traders are buying from them to make the long trip about 5 minutes shorter.
Another farmer tells me story about how a couple traders came and bought several truck loads. They told the farmers they would pay them after they sell it in Kumasi or Accra. The farmers seeing no alternative agreed. Several days later they received a phone call from the trader telling them that it all spoiled and he can’t pay them.
This situation is just one example of the marketing challenges small-scale rural farmers face. They have little power in the markets and are often left to bear all the risk.
So what is the problem, or better yet, what is the solution? Do farmers need to plant with a better idea of market demands? Are farmers lacking information about the fair price for their crops? Should farmers form groups to give them more negotiating power with traders and market women? Are outgrowing schemes that link farmers directly to markets the silver bullet?
In the remaining months of my placement I hope to further investigate at least a couple of these questions as I work with the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to see how we can help farmers become more integrated into markets and develop their farms into a business.
[Internet is hopelessly slow right now. I will add pictures later. Sorry!]
2 Comments
Farmers plant watermelon seeds at the start of the dry season, around the end of December. They grow it in the low-lying areas on the river banks after the water level recedes. Despite the name, ironically watermelon doesn’t require much water to grow. I still haven’t quite figured that one out seeing the stuff is like 99% water, but apparently so long as there is enough moisture in the soil during germination it will grow just fine.
[Watermelon field picture]
After the devastating drought and flood that struck the region, resulting in complete crop failure during the rainy season, farmers saw watermelon as an opportunity to make some desperately needed money during the usually unproductive dry season. They hoped that by producing watermelon, which in the past has fetched a good price at the market, they would be able to earn enough money to feed their families when their current food stocks soon run out.
The result, literally mountains of watermelon...
[Fresh watermelon picture]
It’s like some childhood fantasy of being in a fruity version of Candyland, but the fantasy soon fades to tragedy when you start asking what the watermelon is doing sitting out here in the fields rather than being consumed by hot thirsty children in town. With so many more farmers than usual going into watermelon farming the market is flooded. Most of the watermelon has been harvested and sits rotting on the roadside waiting for a buyer. The farmers try and pile it underneath trees so that the shade will keep cooler, but if they don’t sell it soon it will be too late.
[Rotting watermelon picture]
One of the biggest tragedies is that I know there is a market for the produce. The farther south you go the higher the price. Farmgate: 0.20-0.30 GHc. WaleWale (district capital) 0.50-0.80 GHc. Tamale 1-2 GHc. Accra 5-6 GHc.
People have different perceptions of the situation. One farmer I met is upset because his community has been growing watermelon for a few years. This year however a village closer to the main road has also grown, and traders are buying from them to make the long trip about 5 minutes shorter.
Another farmer tells me story about how a couple traders came and bought several truck loads. They told the farmers they would pay them after they sell it in Kumasi or Accra. The farmers seeing no alternative agreed. Several days later they received a phone call from the trader telling them that it all spoiled and he can’t pay them.
This situation is just one example of the marketing challenges small-scale rural farmers face. They have little power in the markets and are often left to bear all the risk.
So what is the problem, or better yet, what is the solution? Do farmers need to plant with a better idea of market demands? Are farmers lacking information about the fair price for their crops? Should farmers form groups to give them more negotiating power with traders and market women? Are outgrowing schemes that link farmers directly to markets the silver bullet?
In the remaining months of my placement I hope to further investigate at least a couple of these questions as I work with the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to see how we can help farmers become more integrated into markets and develop their farms into a business.
[Internet is hopelessly slow right now. I will add pictures later. Sorry!]
