By Abugri Amos: Environmental Reporter
Farmers at Ashanti Akim North, Hwedim, and Agogo are fully engaged in large-scale cassava farming due to the recent high market price of cassava. A credible source disclosed that per acre of cassava farm is being sold at 16,000 Ghana Cedis. In a breakdown, a quarter acre is sold at 4,000 Ghana Cedis and a half acre costs 8,000 Ghana Cedis.
A critical examination equating the income to the cost of farming shows that cassava farming records a maximum profit compared to other crops farmed at Ashanti Akim North.
The gross cost of farming one (1) acre of cassava amounts to 1,850 Ghana Cedis. Renting the land costs 300 Ghana Cedis, land preparation amounts to 300 Ghana Cedis, cassava sticks for an acre cost 200 Ghana Cedis, and labor work such as weeding and planting the sticks amounts to 1,050 Ghana Cedis. Respecting the expenses exhibited above, one (1) acre of cassava farm records a profit of 14,150 Ghana Cedis.
For a quick review, cassava is a tuber crop that takes a maximum of six months to one year to mature before uprooting, depending on the type of cassava sticks planted by the farmer.
