Ekumfi juice factory to accrue GH¢530 million annually

The government’s flagship programme the One district-One factory, which is to create jobs and alleviate the rate of poverty in the districts and communities, is beginning to gain grounds.

The Alliance for Development and Industrialisation (ADI) has found out that the Ekumfi Juice Factory, which is near completion, will create 5000 direct out grower jobs within the community and its environs.

In a press statement issued in Accra and signed by Godwin Arthur, the Convener, the group said the factory would process about 300,000,000 packs of juice annually for the local and export markets and would generate close to GH¢530 million in revenue.

The facility will be the biggest pineapple juice processing factory in West Africa, with the capacity to process 10 tonnes of fruits per hour.

“The Ekumfi Juice Factory is currently the largest pineapple juice processing factory in West Africa and it has put Ghana on the international radar with regard to the competition of fruit juice products on the export market,” the statement said.

“The ADI has learnt that the juice that will be produced at the factory will not be made from concentrate and also there will be no additives, putting the product ahead of its competitors,” it said.

“We at the ADI have attached ourselves to the commitment of the chiefs and people to this project. The ADI has continued to monitor all these and can attest to the fact that the Ekumfi Project will be one of the largest sources of revenue for this country”, it said.

According to the ADI, if the government could replicate such projects in 10 regions, the country would accrue a total revenue of GH¢5.3 billion a year.

“We again commend the government for the 18-month duration for the construction of this factory. From our records, such a thing has never happened in the history of this country”, it said.

“We are of the view that with the district and community partnership, the factory will transform the lives of the people”, it added.

The Ekumfi Pineapple Processing Factory is the first factory to be constructed under the government’s ‘One District One Factory’ initiative.

The factory is sited on a 50-acre land and has 100-metres length and 50-metres width of factory floor space large enough for additional production works.