Coconut water is mainly made of water – in fact, 94% is water. It is low in calories and a good source of B vitamins and potassium.

The liquid contains amino acids and electrolytes and it has antioxidant benefits.

Coconut water, the liquid endosperm found inside coconuts, supports the development of the hard endosperm. If you harvest the liquid endosperm from immature green coconuts, you get clear, aromatic, and highly perishable coconut water. Coconut water needs to be strained through a cheesecloth-lined sieve right after you open the coconut. After that, chill it to at least 39 degrees Fahrenheit before storing it in the refrigerator or freezer.

The easiest way to store coconut water is to put it into the fridge, but it will only last for 1-2 days. Many experts suggest not storing coconut water outside of refrigeration for more than 3 or 4 hours.

If you want to keep it fresh longer, you can freeze it in ice cube trays or plastic zip-lock bags

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People in four food insecurity “hotspots” in the world are at the brink of famine, a new report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) and the UN World Food Programme (WFP) has warned. Burkina Faso, northeastern Nigeria, South Sudan and Yemen need urgent help or they could slide into famine if conditions there undergo any further deterioration over the coming months. “We are at a catastrophic turning point. Once again, we face the risk of famine in four different parts of the world at the same time,” said Margot van der Velden, WFP Director of Emergencies. “When we declare a famine it means many lives have already been lost. If we wait to find that out for sure, people are already dead,” she added. The “Early Warning Analysis of Acute Food Insecurity Hotspots” report was released on November 6th. It uses the Integrated Phase Classification (IPC) system to chart escalating degrees of food insecurity which include five phases. IPC phase 5 (Catastrophe/famine) is the most severe. Within the four hotspot countries, parts of the population are facing emergency acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 4) – a critical hunger situation with extreme depletion of livelihoods, insufficient food consumption and high acute malnutrition. In the case of Burkina Faso, many households are already in IPC Phase 5 and are experiencing famine-like conditions. The number of desperately hungry people in the country has almost tripling compared to 2019, driven by increasing conflict, displacement and COVID-related impacts on employment and food access.

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Following a confirmed outbreak of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza subtype H5N8 in the Netherlands, Germany, Russia, Denmark and United Kingdom, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture upon advice from the Veterinary Services Directorate has placed a ban on the importation of day old chicks, hatching eggs, frozen chicken, poultry products and poultry feed from these European countries with immediate effect.

Importers are to note that all import permits that were issued for such consignment from Netherlands, Germany, Russia, Denmark and United Kingdom have been rendered invalid with immediate effect.

^{Pals Africa 2021}

The Poultry Aquaculture and Livestock Show Africa Team is pleased to announce to the general public as well as all Sales managers and exporters worldwide that the date for PALS Africa 2021 has been set. The multi-species poultry and livestock event comprising Poultry, Piggery, fishery, feed milling and other Agro allied industries would be coming off on the 28^th to the 30^th of October, 2021 at the Golden Tulip Hotel, Kumasi City.  The event which attracts visitors from all over Ghana and its neighboring countries is anticipated to host a lot more foreign companies this year.

The Team has done a lot of work and are keenly looking forward to an array of investors across the country as well as foreign investors from around the world. Last two year’s event was educative and investment-driven and 2021 will be no different. Spread the news and make sure you don’t miss out either. Call 0203296201 for more information or email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to book a booth.

Date: Oct - 16 - 2020 , 08:39 BY: Samuel Duodu Category: General News

The torrential rains that devastated parts of the North East Region recently have subsided, but the humanitarian situation in the area remains dire.

Some 13,469 people across the region have had their houses completely destroyed by the floods and are currently putting up in schools, churches and temporary camps set up by the North East Regional Secretariat of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO).

Speaking to the Daily Graphic yesterday, the North East Regional Director of NADMO, Mr John Kweku Alhassan, said aside from internally displaced people, 51,736 others were also affected by the floods in other ways.

The North East Regional NADMO Office itself is overstretched and has called for support to contain the situation.

Mr Alhassan, who described the development as “very devastating”, appealed to corporate bodies and individuals to go to the aid of the flood victims to lessen their plight.

Heavy rains/spillage

From the middle of August to the end of September this year, parts of the North East Region experienced massive flooding as a result of heavy rains, which were compounded by the opening of the spill gates of the Bagre Dam in Burkina Faso.

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Date: Oct - 19 - 2020, 07:28 BY: Maclean Kwofi,   

The Council for Scientific and Industries Research (CSIR) is awaiting approval for the commercial release of the country’s first genetically modified (GM) food crop, an insect-resistant cowpea.

A document on the new variety is currently before the Savanna Agricultural Research Institute (SARI) for review and approval after which it will be sent to the National Biosafety Authority for final approval and subsequent commercialisation.

The Principal Investigator of Pod-borer Resistant of Cowpea Project at CSIR, Dr. Jerry Nboyine, made this known to the Daily Graphic at a media engagement on October 15 in Accra.

“We have prepared a document on the product and it is currently awaiting approval from SARI. Once that is done, we will send it to the National Biosafety Authority (NBA) for final approval and subsequent commercialisation,” he said.

He explained that the document consisted of all the works done on the new variety of cowpea genetically engineered to provide built-in resistance to the insect.

Once it was approved, he said the NBA would grant permits to the CSIR to cultivate the new variety out of confinement.

“The CSIR has been cultivating the new variety in confinement for the last seven years and so, a permit from the NBA will enable it to move the crop to farm for another test and subsequently send it to the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) for it to be distributed to farmers.”

He added that Bt cowpea would provide farmers with an alternative to costly and hazardous insecticide spraying and reduce the expense of applying pesticides on their farms.

Cowpea, also known as ‘poor man’s meat,’ is an important staple food and source of protein for millions of people in Ghana and other countries in the West African sub-region.

But cowpea farmers can lose up to 80 per cent of their yields to the pod borer (Maruca vitrata) pest and typically apply pesticides five or 10 times within a planting season in an attempt to control the destructive insect.

This new variety also called Bt cowpea will significantly decrease pesticide use to just two applications per cropping cycle, primarily to control other insect pests. The crop is also resistant to striga and alectra, two parasitic weeds that contribute to yield losses.

The pod borer-resistant (PBR) variety will also increase yields by about 20 per cent, helping the country to reduce its reliance on imports and achieve food security.

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_{30 August 2020}

Mike Abakah-Edu, Western Regional Secretary of the Ghana National Canoe Fishermen Council (GNCFC) has reminded President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and those in the fishing industry to enforce the law to bring transshipment activities to a halt.

He said the uncontrolled activities of trawlers and illegal transshipment activities, popularly known as "Saiko" currently going on in their waters, depriving artisanal fisher folks involved in the artisanal fishing sector of their livelihoods and making them poorer.
This he said this if rectified would secure the livelihood of more than 2.7 million Ghanaians.

He noted that the massive infrastructural improvement, undertaken by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government in the Western Region, especially along the coastal districts of the region like landing beach sites, sea defence and roads among others may not culminate into votes for the party in the December 7, polls if this was not checked.

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Date: August 25,2020

The Ghana National Canoe Fishermen Council in the Central Region has called on the government to take urgent steps to stop illegal transshipment, popularly known as Saiko.

That, the council said, was crucial to help protect the fishing industry that provided food security and livelihoods for many Ghanaians.

The Public Relations Officer of the council, Nana Kweigyah, in a press release on August 18, said the call had become necessary due to the state of Ghana's artisanal fisheries, which was near collapse, largely driven by the activities of industrial trawlers.

Illegal fishing
Saiko is a severely destructive form of illegal fishing where industrial trawlers target the staple catch of artisanal fishers and sell this fish back to local coastal communities at a profit.

It threatens jobs and food security and endangers Ghana’s economy. It is also referred to as “galamsey on the sea”.

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Madam Elizabeth Naa Aforley Quaye, the Minister for Fisheries and Aquaculture Development, has reiterated President Akufo-Addo’s commitment to the livelihood and progress of fisher-folk.

She said the dedication was evident in the distribution of hundreds of outboard motors, the elimination of premix fuel challenges and the construction of landing sites.

The Minister made the remarks at a durbar of Chiefs of Anlo state at Anloga held in honour of the President during a day’s working visit to the area.

“President Akufo Addo loves everybody. He has a soft side for fisher- folk. The Premix fuel issues are now a thing of the past. It is coming on time.

“Akufo Addo wants to marry you. Consider all the developmental projects across the country and vote for him to continue,” she said.

Dr Archibald Yao Letsa, the Volta Regional Minister, said the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government had dotted the region with “too many” projects, and expressed gratitude to the President on behalf of the people.

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_{September 1, 2020}

·         COVID-19 endangers agriculture in countries like Ghana with potentially disastrous knock-on effects for both producers and consumers.

·         Ghana is also showing what governments can do to support their farmers during this time to prevent a food crisis, and create more inclusive and sustainable solutions.

The coronavirus pandemic is dealing a blow to food producers all over the world. In Ghana, one of the world’s biggest cocoa exporters, the livelihoods of millions of smallholder farmers are under threat due to global lockdowns and border closures, as well as the spread of the disease itself.

Agriculture sustains more than half of Ghana’s labour force, mostly as smallholders who cultivate their own plots of land with their families. Agriculture makes up 54% of Ghana’s GDP, and over 40% of export earnings. It also covers over 90% of Ghana’s own food needs. COVID-19 severely endangers this vital sector, with potentially disastrous knock-on effects for both producers and consumers. But Ghana is also showing what governments can do to support their farmers, prevent a food crisis, and create a more inclusive and sustainable way forward.

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