Ernest Abloh is the Chief Agronomist at Blue Skies Ghana and plays a vital role in supporting farmers to meet the high standards required by the company in order to supply retailers throughout the world, and produce the best freshly squeezed juice on the market.
Ernest joined Blue Skies on 22nd May 2000. He was previously employed at the Food Research Institute as an agronomist where he ran a demonstration processing plant. In 2000 he was approached by the Founder of Blue Skies, Anthony Pile, and was asked to help with a project to improve pineapple yields. He was successful and after three months he was offered a permanent position at the company.
Ernest says his proudest achievement is leading a group of farmers in Ghana to become the first in Africa to get group certification for GlobalGAP (a globally recognized standard for good agricultural practice). He is also proud to have achieved the highest standards for Fairtrade, ETI (Ethical Trade Initiative) and to become the first company in the world to be awarded LEAF certification(Linking Environment and Farming) for a group of farmers.
So what is the key to his success? Ernest says it is his hunger for overcoming challenges and achieving the highest standards that has made him successful. It is what pushes him to go the extra mile. And there are always challenges to feed Ernest’s hunger. Challenges like ensuring farmers are able to produce the quality and volume needed to meet ever increasing orders, finding solutions for crop failures and encouraging new farmers to enter agriculture despite declining interest among the younger generations.
Ernest says “Agriculture has got a lot going for it. Without farming we have no food, and Blue Skies has no future. We have many farmers who show that agriculture can be hugely rewarding. Blue Skies has the market and it has exciting plans for the future. It is my job to make sure we have the best fruit possible – and plenty of it!”