Tobacco farmers go up seven-fold

had registered during the same period last year. The deadline for registration is October 31.
“Companies are also registering to contract farmers and the number may go up if all applicants are successful,” TIMB chief executive Dr Andrew Matibiri said yesterday.
Dr Matibiri said 18 companies last year contracted farmers to grow the crop. He said the TIMB was still considering applications from six companies.
Meanwhile, farmers have intensified planting of tobacco since the opening of the planting season on September 1.
By end of September, 6 000 hectares of the crop had been planted compared to 5 000ha for the same period last year.
Dr Matibiri, however, bemoaned the absence of funding for the tobacco sector from both the private sector and Government.
Apart from the usual challenge of electricity, which is affecting irrigation, lack of funding has continued to affect tobacco farmers.
He said farmers were complaining of high input costs which he said were eroding farmers’ profits.
Tobacco has become the highest paying crop compared to maize, wheat and cotton.
Although the Grain Marketing Board offers competitive producer prices, the parastatal does not have ready cash to pay farmers like what is done to tobacco growers.
Cotton farmers last season registered huge losses as companies refused to increase prices to match the ones gazetted by Government.