Anloga Farmers Pin Hopes on 2027 Budget for Tomato Factory as Losses Mount

Vegetable farmers in the Anloga District have made a direct appeal to the government to include a tomato processing factory in the 2027 national budget, warning that without it, their investments will continue to rot in the fields while Ghana spends millions importing tomato paste it could produce at home.

The farmers, drawn from Anloga, Avume, Dzita, and Anyanui, told the Ghana News Agency that tomato production is the economic backbone of their communities, yet the absence of a processing facility leaves them at the mercy of a market that collapses every harvest season .

“The absence of a reliable processing facility continued to expose us to some significant financial losses,” said Emmanuel Gbede, a farmer. He described a familiar cycle: when tomatoes flood the market, prices crash, and farmers unable to find buyers watch their produce spoil, losing everything they invested in seeds, fertiliser, labour, and transport .

The numbers behind that cycle are staggering. In September 2026, a box of tomatoes that would ordinarily sell for between GH¢1,050 and GH¢2,500 fetched as little as GH¢70 to GH¢80 because buyers were scarce . Farmers who borrowed to finance their crops risked defaulting on loans .

A District Built for Processing

Anloga’s production capacity is not in question. Estimates gathered by the GNA in September 2026 suggested the district has approximately 28,000 farmers, with between 18,000 and 22,000 engaged in tomato production annually, supported by irrigation that allows year-round cultivation . That is precisely the kind of reliable supply base a processing factory requires.

The broader national picture reinforces the logic. Ghana spends between GH¢650 million and GH¢760 million annually importing fresh tomatoes and tomato paste, while post-harvest losses are estimated at GH¢175 million to GH¢250 million each year, largely due to insufficient cold storage . The Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana has estimated total annual losses from import dependency, post-harvest waste, and limited value addition at GH¢5.7 billion, equivalent to about 1.2 percent of GDP .

The farmers’ appeal also carries political weight. President John Dramani Mahama announced in Anloga on November 7 that his government would invest more than US$9 billion in job-creating sectors between 2027 and 2030 under the New Economy initiative, with commercial agriculture among the priority areas for the Volta Region . The 2027 Budget, to be presented by Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson on Thursday, November 12, is expected to detail how that investment will be allocated .

Promises Made, Delivery Awaited

The factory is not a new idea. In September 2026, Deputy Agriculture Minister John Dumelo visited Anloga during a tomato glut, bought 100 baskets for school feeding caterers, and announced plans for a processing factory expected to be ready in 2027 . Volta Regional Minister James Gunu has also pushed for a facility, identifying Anloga, Keta, Akatsi North, and Agotime-Ziope as key production areas . The Ministry of Food and Agriculture’s Ghana Tomato Self-Sufficiency Initiative, launched in September, targets 400,000 tonnes of annual production and expanded domestic processing capacity .

But for farmers who have heard such promises before, inclusion in the budget is the test. “The inclusion of the project in the 2027 budget would demonstrate government’s commitment to addressing their long-standing challenges,” the farmers said, adding that the factory must “move beyond public discussions and become a funded development priority” .

They also stressed that a factory alone would not suffice. Improved irrigation, quality seedlings, affordable fertilisers, extension services, and modern equipment are needed to ensure a consistent supply of raw materials—without which any processing facility would struggle, as past investments in the sector have demonstrated .

For now, the farmers wait. The tomatoes will ripen again next season, and the question is whether the budget will finally give them somewhere to go other than the ground.