Deputy Minister for Food and Agriculture, Kennedy Osei Nyarko, has hinted that his outfit, together with the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI), will soon be going after persons believed to be re-bagging foreign rice as local rice for sale.
Speaking in an interview on Adom FM’s morning show Dwaso Nsem Thursday, the Minister revealed that the new development came to his notice during an event organised by the Ministry.
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“During the recently organised ‘Eat Ghana Rice’ event, the Ministry got to know that some persons are re-bagging foreign rice as local rice to sell them and I was very surprised when I got to know of it,” he told host Captain Smart.
Mr Nyarko said his outfit, together with the BNI, will not relent on efforts to ensure that such people are arrested and prosecuted.
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“Now that we know this, we will inform the BNI and we will go round to fish out those doing that, get them arrested and prosecuted,” he said.
He later revealed that the government is working closely with Wienco Ghana Limited to buy all paddy rice from farmers in the country, amidst reports of rice going waste for lack of ready market.
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The Ministry of Food and Agriculture, as part of its plan to promote made in Ghana rice and increase domestic consumption of locally produced rice, has commenced a campaign to that effect.
The campaign, which has heightened awareness about the need to consume locally produced rice and forget imported rice, has resulted in some persons re-bagging foreign rice to sell as locally produced rice.