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Exotic vegetables like lettuce, spring onion and cabbage are not regarded as part of
the traditional Ghanaian diet. Nevertheless, recent evidence shows that the consumption of
these crops is increasing among urban dwellers. For example, more than 200,000 urban
dwellers consume them daily in Accra (Obuobie et
al., 2006). The vegetables are also a preferred
cash crop because of their potential for lifting poor farmers out of poverty. Nugent (2000)
reported that urban agriculture can meet large parts of the urban demand for certain kinds of food
such as fresh vegetables, poultry, potatoes, milk, fish and eggs. In general, vegetable
crop production in Ghana is done for three main reasons, namely, food production for
consumption, income for smallholder male and female farmers, and nutrition.
The experience of Ghana indicates that urban crop farming comprises two forms:
open space production for the urban market, and backyard gardens (cultivated mostly
for domestic consumption) These farming systems are usually found in lowlands or
along streams, which are unsuitable for construction purposes, but favorable for seasonal or
year-round irrigation. Urban farming is less of a family business
and more of an individual enterprise. Generally, some crops are traditionally handled by
men, whereas others are `women crops'. Open space irrigated urban vegetable farming in Ghana is male
dominated (over 90%), who grow whatever crop gives
profit. More than 15 types of vegetables
are cultivated in Ghana. The most commonly grown urban vegetables are the most
perishable (leafy) ones, which have to be produced in market
proximity, largely, due to the absence of cold
transport facilities. These are often `exotic' (nontraditional) vegetables, which
reflect imported diets and are consumed raw in salads, such as lettuce, spring onions and
cabbage. |
