There is a shortage of local rice in the Tema Community One Market and its environs as the 2022 Christmas season draws closer.
Sellers of local rice attributed the shortage to producers selling their produce to foreign customers and other wholesalers.
Mr. Anthony Tetteh of Washman Enterprise who deals in local rice told the Ghana News Agency at Pre-Xmas Market monitoring that the local rice had not been made available for retailers and wholesalers to purchase making them run out at the sales outlets.
He added that because of the quality and price of local rice, some customers preferred it to imported ones.
Mr. Tetteh said consumers of local rice were mostly the older generations and claimed that it had more nutritional benefits than most imported ones, hence its high demand especially as Christmas approached.
Ms Priscilla Arthur, the supervisor at Kaysen Gaisie Depot, Tema Community One Main told the GNA that consumers preferred the local rice especially, but there had been a shortage in the market recently.
Madam Valentina Mensah a consumer said local rice was cheaper than the imported ones, yet it was difficult to find in the market; adding “I bought 5kg of an imported rice for GH¢90.00 and above and buy 5kg of any local rice for GH¢60.00.”
She told the GNA that the shortage of local rice may affect those who have developed a taste and preference for it.
