Grasscutter - A delicacy for many Ghanaians

Shirley Asiedu Addo Features Jun - 09 - 2014 , 13:10

They are five beautiful undergraduate ladies in a rather unusual class. The seminar is on grasscutter production. In a huge lecture theatre on the University of Cape Coast campus, they sat attentive in a class of about 50, learning the skill of rearing grasscutters.

Susana is beautiful, looks like an actress without her makeup, plus she is an ‘A’ student. She offers one of the prestigious courses at UCC, Bachelor of Commerce, and is in the fourth year. She sat in the seminar.

‘K’ and his five young unkempt friends walked along the road with hunting dogs and bags. They consider themselves “unemployed” and hunt to make ends meet.

Susana and her beautiful friends and ‘K’ and his guys may seem to come from two different worlds but they have something in common; grasscutters.

Susana cares little about the perception of a lady grasscutter farmer or an undergraduate grasscutter farmer.

“Not every business student wants to work in the bank,” she told me. “Grasscutter farming is one option I would seriously consider after school and that is why I am here.

The grasscutter seminar is one of the many being undertaken by the Business Incubator of the UCC Business School to get more people, both students and members of the public, to start their own businesses rather than wait for white-collar jobs.

It was an interesting seminar. Retired Captain Mensa Amuzu Glo was in the seminar at UCC and said he would start the grasscutter production to keep him active in his retirement.

Grasscutter meat

Grasscutter meat is abhorred in cultures in Uganda and other parts of the world, but in Ghana, it is almost prestigious and revered for many reasons. It is tasty. People of all ages and classes love this meat in Ghana. In fact, in many West African countries, including Benin, Togo and Nigeria, grasscutter meat is a delicacy.

The supply for the high demand varies. In August through to March, the supplies are high. But From March through to July, they are a bit scarce.

In chop bars (eateries) all over the nation, grasscutter meat is arguably the most popular “bush meat” (name for game from the wild in Ghana). For most patrons, the grasscutter meat, its unique taste and tender nature cannot be compared to many other conventional meats. And the cost of the meat, compared to other conventional meats, including beef, mutton, chevon and chicken, confirms this. The grasscutter meat is more expensive. A piece of grasscutter meat alone on your fufu (pounded cassava) can go for between GH¢5.00 and GH¢10.00.

People’s love for the grasscutter and everything about it is amazing.

Believe it, in Ghana, the droppings of the grasscutter are even used by some people for soup.

But thankfully, grasscutter is available throughout the year. According to Dr Moses Teye of the Department of Animal Science of the University of Cape Coast, grasscutter meat is ideal, considering the fact that it is rich in high quality protein and low in fat.

Physical characteristics

The grasscutter, also known as cane rat and referred to as Akranti/Akrantie by many in Ghana, is a wild rodent hunted for food. It has a short, thick neck and shiny slippery fur.

It is usually mild and harmless, unless they feel threatened. It is said to be a skilled swimmer and feeds mainly on grass.

Grasscutter domestication and business

Though the business of domesticating grasscutters (Thryonomys swinderianus) is known in the country, the sub-region and in other parts of the world, Ghana has not been able to significantly optimise the benefits of grasscutter production for the economy.

Unlike chicken and other meat products that encounter keen competition from imports, the grasscutter virtually has no competition. But the production of grasscutter somehow remains in the category of subsistence farming, placing demand far above supply. Many of those who patronise the grasscutter meat buy them from hunters who use hunting dogs or people specialised in trapping the grasscutter in the wild.

Others buy them from grasscutters farmers

Mr Kofi Adjei is a grasscutter farmer. He said he had been producing grasscutter for sale for the past ten years. He says it is good business.

He sells live grasscutters to people who want to venture into grasscutter production in and around Mankessim in the Central Region.

“The only problem is the cost involved in feeding them. I buy cassava to feed them and that makes the domesticated ones more expensive. Sometimes, it’s a bit difficult to sell them,” he said.

So Adjei also deals in grasscutter from the wild. “Now technology makes everything easier, even with the grasscutter business,” he said smiling. The successful trap owners call Adjei on his mobile phone to pick the trapped grasscutters. “It makes life a lot easier,” he added. He gets his supplies from Nsanfo, Egya, and Biriwa in the Central Region.

Women grasscutter dealers from Accra come to Mankessim to buy the meat from Adjei and others like him to eatery operators in Accra.

I met two of these dealers. Madam Vida Entue, known in her business circles as Adjoa Pomaa, buys grasscutter for sale. She has a licence from the Forestry Commission and the Wild Life Department to sell game.

The average grasscutter goes for between GH¢30.00 cedis and GH¢50.00.

She had bought two grasscutters and an antelope. She sat at the lorry station in Mankessim waiting for more of the dealers to bring some more from the rural communities around Mankessim.

She said the business was seasonal, as the meat was more available from August to January.

Business is good. I have been in this business for more than 25 years. I don’t know any other business and it has served my family well.

She prefers dealing in grasscutters from the wild because her customers prefer their meat to the domesticated ones.

“But the domesticated ones also sell. Some people want to buy the live grasscutter and kill it themselves because of religion,” she added.

Ajoa Pomaa enjoys eating the meat but not often. “I don’t want to be eating my profits, I can’t afford to enjoy the meat often,” she said. Daa Moto Kumah is another grasscutter dealer and has been in the business for over 30 years.

She was cautious of bad publicity initially. “We have every cause to be skeptical about journalists. The grasscutter business nearly collapsed some years back because of bad publicity. Now we are cautious of every media person,” she said.

They said farmers must be encouraged to rear grasscutters to augment constant supplies of the meat to meet the high demand.

Many who trap or hunt the rodents roast them and sell them to patrons in vehicles along the Accra/Cape Coast Highway, with the market concentrated between the Mankessim/Winneba stretch.