Africa-Press – Malawi. The Tobacco Commission (TC) has assured tobacco growers in the country that the regulator will continue consulting stakeholders on the cost of producing the leaf.
The commission is this week engaging tobacco farmers in the country’s three regions on costs involved in the production of the leaf this year. The first consultation session was held in Blantyre on Tuesday, the second on Wednesday in Lilongwe and the last one is scheduled for Friday in Mzuzu.
TC spokesperson Telephorus Chigwenembe said Thursday that the cost determination process is important to those that value tobacco. “We will continue consulting because the cost of production helps in determining minimum prices of tobacco.
“We, therefore, need to have an accurate picture of how much farmers have invested in producing a given volume, for example a kilogramme, of tobacco,” Chigwenembe said.
He said the commission is working with Agricultural Research and Extension Trust in the exercise, which will culminate in the production of figures that will be shared with stakeholders such as tobacco buyers for their input.
According to TC, apart from helping in determining minimum prices, the cost of production also helps in guiding decision making by institutions such as insurers, lenders and others involved in the tobacco value chain. Tobacco remains Malawi’s major forex earner.
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