Professor Charles Tortoe, Director of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research-Food Research Institute (CSIR-FRI), emphasizes the need for targeted financial support. This support would enable small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Ghana's food processing sector to acquire modern machinery. It would also help them commercialize locally developed technologies, a crucial step for economic growth.
Ghana has made progress in developing food processing technologies through public research institutions. However, many local enterprises lack the financial capacity to adopt these innovations on a commercial scale. The main challenge is not the absence of research or technology. Instead, it is the inability of SMEs to finance the necessary equipment. This equipment would allow them to move from small-scale manual production to modern industrial processing.
This situation has wider implications for Ghana’s agricultural economy. Post-harvest losses continue to affect farmers and reduce the value of local production. During peak harvest times, excess produce often floods markets, driving prices down. Large quantities then spoil due to limited storage and processing capacity. Properly equipped SMEs could absorb surplus agricultural produce and convert it into higher-value products.
Professor Tortoe stated, "At the end of the food value addition, we have generated the technologies. These technologies are available. SMEs must take up these technologies." The high cost of industrial machinery for food preservation, drying, milling, packaging, and storage is a major barrier. Equipment such as industrial dehydrators, mechanized mills, automated sealing systems, and stainless-steel holding tanks is essential. These items are necessary for producing safe, consistent, and market-ready processed foods. Yet they remain beyond the reach of many Ghanaian entrepreneurs.
Without access to such machinery, many SMEs cannot meet quality, safety, and volume requirements. This prevents them from competing with imported processed foods. It also stops them from supplying formal retail markets. Traditional processing methods, like open-air sun drying, expose food products to contamination risks. This makes it hard for local processors to guarantee uniform quality and longer shelf life.
Professor Tortoe called for structured interventions to lower the cost of machinery acquisition for food processors. These interventions could include import duty exemptions on essential food manufacturing equipment. State-backed equipment leasing schemes and shared processing facilities within industrial parks are also options. Such support would help SMEs use technologies developed by research institutions. They could then convert these into commercial products. This would create jobs, reduce food imports, and support rural incomes.
Ghana’s industrialization agenda must give more attention to the midstream segment of the agricultural value chain. This is where raw produce becomes marketable consumer goods. While supporting primary agriculture is important, Ghana must also invest in processing infrastructure. This is key to reducing waste, improving food security, and building a competitive agro-processing sector. For many SMEs, access to affordable long-term finance is a major obstacle. The high cost of credit from commercial banks makes it difficult for early-stage food processing firms to invest in capital-intensive machinery.
Professor Tortoe’s call reinforces concerns that Ghana’s agricultural transformation will be limited without stronger links among research, financing, and private-sector production. Industry observers believe targeted financing for agro-processing SMEs could help Ghana retain more value from its agricultural output. It would also support import substitution and expand opportunities under frameworks like the African Continental Free Trade Area. The CSIR-FRI has long worked on food preservation and product development. However, Professor Tortoe insists that for these technologies to have a wider economic impact, SMEs need support to acquire the necessary commercialization tools. Ghana’s food processing sector can become a significant driver of jobs, exports, and rural development.