By Phillip Pasula
LILONGWE-(MaraviPost)-This year’s tobacco marketing season may open in the second week of April but the tobacco industry awaits approval from the Ministry of Agriculture.
Chief Executive Officer for Tobacco Commission (TC), Dr Joseph Chidanti Malunga, told journalists on Tuesday in Lilongwe that the tobacco industry presented the proposal to the Ministry of Agriculture.
Malunga added that he expects a successful marketing season this year because some farmers who stopped growing tobacco have come back into the trade and so have some buyers although Cyclone Freddy has affected some tobacco fields, especially in the southern region.
“We are happy that this year promises a successful tobacco marketing season. We are hopeful that there will be competition among buyers. This is so because we may have new buyers this year,” Malunga said.
Agricultural expert Ronald Chilumpha said he hopes for better prices on the market this year.
“When there are more buyers, the competition is high and prices go up. There is quality leaf in the fields this year,” observed Chilumpha.
Last year, Malawi earned US$182 million after selling 85 million Kilograms of tobacco.
Tobacco is Malawi’s largest foreign exchange earner.
