Adding value to the plantain tree; Colombia Embassy shows the way

It is noon and on the Graphic Road, a group of young men surround a woman who is busily frying plantain.

Across the street, a plantain chips seller is chasing vehicles. Just a stone’s throw away, a chop bar operator is busily peeling plantain for ampesi ( boiled plantain) which normally goes with palava sauce or garden eggs stew. Yet, another  woman is peeling  plantain but this time it is  for ‘fufu’.

These senarios show how plantain is used in Ghana, mainly for food. However,  more  can be derived from the plantain plant.  

Largest producer of plantain

According to a 2010 agricultural report of the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO), Ghana is the largest producer of plantain in West Africa and the second in Africa after Uganda and Rwanda.

The production of this crop is mostly done by people living in rural communities where it is used as a shade for cocoa trees.

However, because it is a perishable product, most plantain farme