Zambian tobacco growers left with 3,000 tonnes

Buyers have left Zambian farmers with more than 3,000 tonnes of unsold tobacco, according to a story by Julius Phiri for the Times of Zambia.

The Tobacco Board of Zambia’s (TBZ) CEO, Samson Muyembe, was quoted as saying that the independent tobacco farmers had been left with their crops after buying companies had decided to prioritize buying from contracted growers.

However, he said farmers should remain calm because TBZ had entered into negotiations with Tombwe Processing Limited (TPL) to buy the tobacco. He said the negotiations would end soon.

He said also that Pemba and Alliance One were still buying tobacco from farmers in Eastern Province.