New international contacts for Macfrut. Over the past few days, Cesena Fiera president Renzo Piraccini visited a few businesses in Ghana including Agrotropics. Owner Philippe Abayory owns six companies covering 680 hectares in total, 350 of which are destined to mango cultivation.
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"The company is located 60 km west of Accra, it covers 60 hectares and was acquired a short time ago. All the existing crops are being improved and the owner wants to dedicate the part that is still free to mango cultivation, but does not rule out the possibility of also growing avocados and other crops, especially considering the large availability of water and electricity. This is because the Volta river, the main river in Ghana, flows nearby and the the dam with the power plant guarantees a continuous supply of energy, not something to be taken for granted in Africa."
The packaging warehouse is located 20 km away and is currently not operating as there is no harvested produce. Last year, Agrotropics produced 1800 tons of mango and exported 280 40-feet containers. The main outlets are the Arab Emirates, Lebanon and the UK. Overall, the company has 180 employees.
Three mango varieties are cultivated: Kent, Palma e Kate. Harvesting is between April and June. Beans are sown below the mango crops as they fix nitrogen in the soil, just like all pulses. In addition, the market for this produce is excellent and constitutes an additional income.
Furrow irrigation is employed as the water is taken from the river though a pump. The flow rate of the Volta river is considerable and there is great availability throughout the year, so there is no particular need to save water.
"Philippe Abayory also imports agricultural machinery and is the president of the Ghana chamber of commerce. Next year, he will attend Macfrut (8th-10th May 2019) together with a group of companies in the African pavilion."