A project aimed at reducing aflatoxin contamination in Ghana’s food supply is prioritising women engaged in post-harvest activities, following findings that limited access to appropriate drying and storage facilities exposes them to contamination risks.
Aflatoxins are toxic substances produced by certain moulds that grow on crops such as maize and groundnuts, particularly under poor drying and storage conditions.
Exposure to high levels of aflatoxins can cause serious health problems, making prevention along the food value chain essential.
Dr Rose Omari, Project Coordinator of the Enhancing Aflatoxin Management in Ghana’s Maize and Groundnuts (EAMMAG) project, told the Ghana News Agency that the initiative’s gender analysis had identified gaps in women’s access to facilities and resources for drying, processing and trading agricultural produce, with implications for food safety and their livelihoods.
The findings of the project, being implemented by the Science and Technology Policy Research Institute of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (STEPRI-CSIR), showed that although women played significant roles in post-harvest activities, some lacked basic facilities, including tarpaulins for drying produce and appropriate storage equipment.
Dr Omari, who is also a Chief Research Scientist and Deputy Director of STEPRI-CSIR, said the project would prioritise disadvantaged women in the distribution of support and the introduction of improved practices to minimise contamination.
The initiative is being implemented in seven districts across selected regions of Ghana.
She said the project would go beyond distributing equipment to establish systems that would enable beneficiaries to continue accessing and using the resources after its completion.
The interventions would include providing tarpaulins for drying crops, moisture meters to assess moisture content and hermetic bags for safer storage.
Dr Omari said the project had also established an innovation platform bringing together actors across the agricultural value chain, input suppliers and buyers to support the sustainability of the interventions beyond the project period.
The platforms connect beneficiaries to suppliers of essential equipment and materials while linking farmers, traders and other value chain actors to buyers once their produce meets the required food safety standards.
She said the project was collaborating with several institutions, including the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA), agricultural extension officers, district-level public health departments, the University of Ghana and other industry stakeholders, to strengthen food safety practices and ensure the sustainability of the interventions.
Dr Omari added that arrangements were being made to provide testing equipment to support the assessment of produce for aflatoxin contamination.