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Minister Made yesterday said it was unfair for AMA to continue levying farmers who were already burdened by other things.
“There will be no levies charged to farmers without full consultation with Government through the Ministry,” said Minister Made.
“The authority should also engage farmers unions when coming up with levies.”
Farmers, he said, were already faced with problems associated with the natural phenomenon and were struggling to produce under drought conditions.
He said emphasis should be placed on the interests of farmers.
Farmers have recently been complaining of the unilateral imposition of levies which they said were increasing production costs and eroding profits.
They strongly opposed poultry and livestock levies saying such statutory obligations would result in many small holder producers being pushed out of business due to viability challenges. AMA is drafting a Statutory Instrument that will require all poultry producers to register, pay levies and submit returns to the authority.
The Poultry and Poultry Products Industry Development Regulations 2013 has since been opposed by farmers who felt the authority had a hidden agenda.
According to AMA, the instrument would bring sanity and order in the industry while records would be used for planning purposes.
AMA director, production planning and operations, Mr Maxwell Chikanda said AMA was still working on the document and expected stakeholders to make contributions and identify omitted issues to address emerging challenges.
On import licences, Minister Made said the authority should encourage the support for local farmers than promoting farmers elsewhere through imports.
Online Reporter