The Tobacco Commission (TC) has, indefinitely, extended the 2024/2025 tobacco selling season at Mzuzu, Chinkhoma and Lilongwe Auction floors to allow farmers sell their leaves, following concerns that large volumes of the crop remain unsold.  

Last month, the ministry of Agriculture also extended the tobacco marketing season from 29 August to 12 September, but TC spokesperson Telephorus Chigwenembe said they could not close the auction floors on 12 September as there were more farmers who needed to trade their leaves.

Said Chigwenembe, “we have seen that we still have significant volumes of unsold tobacco, and closing the season would mean denying a lot of farmers an opportunity to sell their crops….”

Chigwenembe, nonetheless, did not provide a specific date for the closure of the season.

“In the next few days, we will be able to decide when we can close the 2024/25 tobacco selling season.”

Despite the extension, some farmers argue that the move is ineffective, claiming buyers have stopped purchasing tobacco.

Msaiwale Zakaliya, a tobacco farmer from Kasungu expressed frustration:

“They have extended the tobacco marketing season but the companies are no longer buying the leaf. For three weeks now, here at Chinkhoma Floors, farmers are unable to sell their tobacco.”

As of Thursday, 11 September, 209.8 million kilograms of tobacco valued at $525.4 million had been sold at an average price of $2.50 per kilogram.

This is the highest volume of tobacco sold in Malawi in 13 years, according to TC.