Participants in the ongoing Community-Based Entrepreneurship Training (CBET) in the Abura Asebu Kwamankese District have been introduced to practical marketing strategies aimed at cutting losses, boosting sales and strengthening the viability of their small businesses.

The training, led by the KNUST Nutrition and Sustainable Agri-food Collaborative in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation (Nkabom Project) focuses on ways local agripreneurs could expand market access and create value-added products.

“Producers toiled throughout the year to bring out their crops, but selling remained a challenge,” said facilitator Richard Agyare Ntim, who noted that poor marketing skills, weak road networks and post-harvest losses were major barriers.

Trainees explored processing tubers into chips or flour, and converting raw materials into items such as juices, cakes, gari and bread to reach new customer segments.

“If people were not buying fresh produce, value-added alternatives could expand the market scope,” Ntim said.

The workshop also introduced an integrated marketing approach, urging participants to diversify sales channels.

They mapped potential buyers ranging from manufacturers and restaurants to households, retail outlets and institutional clients, including government buffer stock and caterers under the school-feeding programme.

“Relying on a single sales line increased risk, whereas multiple channels improved the chances of moving most of the harvest and cushioning cash flow for the next cycle,” Ntim told participants.