Tama Farmers Trust, a body representing tobacco growers’ interests, has noted increasing production costs due to the need for irrigation in most parts, which should be factored in minimum price build-up.
Tama Farmers Trust president Abiel Kalima Banda disclosed this in an interview on Thursday as farmers continue taking care of their leaf in the field ahead of the 2025 selling season which has drawn interest from farmers after a successful 2024 season.
Kalima Banda, who is also a commercial farmer, has highlighted the need for more extension services during the growing season from the buying companies who control 80 percent of the tobacco production through contract-farming.
He said: “Preparations for the forthcoming season are going on well as farmers are busy taking care of tobacco in the field. As of now, some places have started receiving rains while others are still waiting for rains.
“The only concern is that in the areas where rains have not come yet farmers are forced to fetch water at a distance to make sure their seedlings are in good condition and we really believe this is another cost of production that should be considered.”
According to Kalima Banda, this case is serious because rivers dried up in such areas and determined farmers are forced to employ casual labour for the task and, he has insisted that it is a cost of production to be constituted in pricing.
The Tama Farmers Trust’s president has also highlighted the need for more extension services to ensure growers produce quality leaf under both contract and auction market.
“Extension services are critical in tobacco production. I must say that buyers, who support 80 percent of the country’s tobacco production through contract-farming, are doing fairly well and have to continue their efforts,” said Kalima Banda.
His comments come following an appeal by the Media Network on Tobacco for buyers to invest in extension service provision to auction farmers which it felt are mainly being left out as most buyers only support their contracted farmers.
The network’s chairperson Alfred Chauwa said: “We are calling for buyers to offer extension services to all farmers because they buy the golden leaf from everyone.
“For years now, quality has remained the main determining factor for good prices and it has also remained the determining factor for the rejection rate.”
In a separate interview JTI Malawi director of corporate affairs and communications Limbani Kakhome said he is aware of the calls on extension services, but stressed the need for the industry to set up minimum requirements.
“As a company, we have our model but I think for the industry we need to have a framework or a minimum requirement that industry players would be following as a benchmark,” he said.
There was no immediate comment from Tobacco Commission (TC).
This year, tobacco buyers are demanding 213 million kilogrammes (kg), a feat Tama Farmers Trust said will be difficult to achieve due to capacity challenges.
TC licensed about 54 370 farmers to grow 238.9 million kg of tobacco, which brings in about 60 percent of the country’s foreign exchange earnings.
Last season, TC licensed farmers to grow 265.9 million kg of the leaf, but farmers ended up producing 133 million kg. Then the country raked in $396.9 (about K694.9 billion) from the leaf sold at an average price of $2.98 (K5 217) per kg, a rise from the previous season’s $282.1 million (K494 billion) at average price of $2.14 (about K3 747) per kg.
In the 2021/2022 season, the country earned $197 million (about K344.9 billion) at an average price of $1.59 (about K2 784) per kg while in 2020/21 season, the country realised $195 million (about K341.4 billion) at an average price of $1.60 (about K2 801) per kg.
