MZUZU-(MaraviPost)-As tobacco markets in the country continue to open doors for farmers to weep from their sweat, Limbe Auction Floors open today with an expectation of better prices.
According to the president of Tobacco Association of Malawi (Tama) Farmer Trust, Abel Masache Banda, farmers expect nothing but better prices from the leaf so that they can smile at last.
“We, as farmers, have been ready, we are prepared to sell our tobacco using the technologies by buyers so we are almost there. What we expect are good market prices, nothing else, but better prices,” said Masache Banda.
On her part, Spokesperson for AHL Group, Theresa Ndanga, said as Limbe Auction Floors open today, all preventive measures against Covid 19 pandemic will strictly be observed.
Ndanga said: “All the measures that we are implementing in the other floors: Lilongwe and Chinkhoma, are also applying to other floors: Limbe as well as when we open Mzuzu Auction Floors. Among others: we have restrictions to entry. Only those people that have been certified and have something or a duty to carry within the selling floors will be allowed in. It’s not everyone, because we want to avoid overcrowding and we want to make sure that we are observing social distance.”
Ndanga also hinted that Limbe Market will open with about 1, 500 bells of the leaf. She also said the market will open with new arrangements that will see to it that low volumes of the leaf are sold on the day.
Limbe Tobacco Auction Floors open way after Lilongwe and Chinkhoma Selling Floors opened on 20 and 22 April, 2020, respectively.
This season, Malawi will sell about 154 million kilograms of tobacco.
