From Harvest to Profit – Smarter Storage for Better Markets in Ghana
With post-harvest losses reaching up to 40% in Ghana, innovative storage and market solutions are making a measurable difference. Through a development partnership with Saving Grains 301 GmbH under the Fund for the Promotion of Innovation in Agriculture (i4Ag), more than 16,000 smallholder farmers have improved grain management, reduced losses and increased market opportunities. The inauguration of the new community warehouse in Shebo in Northern Ghana marks another milestone in building more resilient food systems and strengthening rural livelihoods.
The Fund for the Promotion of Innovation in Agriculture (i4Ag), in partnership with Saving Grains 301 GmbH and local farming communities, has reached an important milestone with the inauguration of a new community warehouse in Shebo, Northern Ghana. The facility provides safe grain storage, supports aggregation and quality management, and creates new market opportunities by connecting farmers, traders and buyers.
Over the past two years, the project has addressed one of Ghana's major agricultural challenges—post-harvest losses of up to 40% of harvested grain—by introducing an integrated package of innovations. These include hermetic storage bags, digital quality monitoring and traceability systems, improved storage infrastructure, biomass-based grain drying technologies and inclusive business models that strengthen food security while increasing farmers' incomes.
The results demonstrate the effectiveness of this integrated approach. More than 16,000 smallholder farmers, including over 8,000 women, were trained in improved post-harvest management practices. Around 90% adopted at least one promoted innovation, while 80% reported reduced post-harvest losses. The project also supported the establishment of 27 farmer groups, many led by women and young people, strengthening collective marketing, knowledge exchange and access to financial services.
Working closely with Saving Grains 301 GmbH, i4Ag also demonstrated the viability of market-based solutions for post-harvest management. More than 18,000 farmers registered on the Saving Grains platform, over 1,000 metric tonnes of grain were traded during the past twelve months, more than 6,000 hermetic storage bags were introduced to the Ghanaian market, and post-harvest losses within the Saving Grains business model were reduced by 17.5%.
The project closing week brought together representatives from government, academia, the private sector, development partners and farming communities to celebrate two years of successful collaboration and discuss how the project's achievements can be sustained and scaled. The week began with the inauguration of the Shebo community warehouse and concluded in Accra with a stakeholder workshop to reflect on key achievements, share learning experiences and identify priorities for scaling successful innovations beyond the project's lifetime.
This project is part of the Sustainable Agricultural Supply Chains Initiative (SASI). The SASI promotes green, fair and inclusive agricultural supply chains. Together with politics, business and civil society, it puts sustainability issues on the agenda and shapes the political discourse. The initiative is implemented by GIZ on behalf of BMZ.