Here is a selection of eight companies capitalising on the opportunities in Ghana’s agribusiness and food industry.

1. Company taps into growing demand for superfood fonio

Fonio, the ancient West African cultivated grass that produces small nutritious grains, is gaining popularity as a superfood among health-conscious consumers. Fonio is rich in amino acids, protein and iron, gluten-free and has a low glycaemic index that makes it suitable for diabetics. It is drought-resistant, can grow without the support of fertiliser and restores organic matter in fallow soil. In Ghana, Abdulai A. Dasana and Salmal Abdulai, founders of the AMAATI Group, recognised the potential of the crop back in 2012. Read more

2. How Ghana’s Catherine Krobo Edusei capitalised on demand for high-end fresh produce

When Catherine Krobo Edusei first took her freshly grown herbs to the local supermarket in Accra, the manager didn’t know what they were. Ghana, like many African countries, imports large volumes of food products and the dried, imported variety of herbs were the only kind people knew. Two decades later, her company is one of the biggest suppliers not just of fresh herbs, but also spices, fruit and vegetables. Read more

3. Ghanaian entrepreneur returned home from the US to commercialise the moringa tree

Kwami Williams is CEO of MoringaConnect, a Ghanaian company which manufactures food and personal care products from the moringa tree. “Through our True Moringa brand, we create health and beauty products powered by nutrient-rich moringa. We’re on a mission to make wellness accessible by bringing underutilised superfood ingredients to underserved people on the continent and beyond,” he explains. Read more

4. Ghana: Entrepreneur spots opportunity in honey and beekeeping industry

Sadik Ibn Abdulai is a firm believer that the competitive advantage for northern Ghana lies in agriculture. He runs Tilaa, a beekeeping and cashew nut business operating in the Mion District and headquartered in Tamale. The company, which he co-founded with Arif Abdullah, sells honey and beeswax as well as cashew nuts and animal feed made from cashew leaves and honey. Read more

5. Revolutionising protein supply with edible insects

Shobhita Soor, founder of Legendary Foods in Ghana, has a mission to make insect larvae (particularly that of the palm weevil) the most affordable source of protein in West Africa. Read more

6. Idea to commercialise a local pepper sauce becomes a listed food company

Twenty-eight years ago, Leticia Osafo-Addo returned to her native Ghana after studying as an anaesthetist and critical care therapist in Germany. She never entered the medical field, instead choosing a different path after recognising a gap in the market to commercialise the production of a local pepper sauce: shito. The sauce is used as the main ingredient in many of the country’s popular dishes. Read more

7. Entrepreneur builds business by turning cocoa waste into organic fertiliser

Akwasi Osei-Bobie Ansah had obtained a teaching degree after school but was always more interested in agriculture. Back home in the village where his parents had their fields, he had observed higher crop yields in areas where cocoa shells were left to decompose. He realised that this waste product from Ghana’s biggest export product could be channelled into making an organic compost or fertiliser. Today, Farmers Hope products – the original organic fertiliser (named Asaase Nofosuo) and an organic pesticide and fungicide – are sold in both Ghana and Burkina Faso. Read more

8. Businessman explains the ups and downs of building a seed company in Ghana

Ben Kemetse is the co-founder of M&B Seeds and Agricultural Services, a company which produces quality seed for small-scale farmers in Ghana. “My first priority is to increase seed output, educate the farmers and bring quality seed as close as possible to the doorstep of the farmer. The profit margin on farming is extremely thin. We don’t want the farmer to lose that small profit they make because they have bad seed, bad inputs or bad agronomic inputs,” explains Kemetse. Read more