Tanzania: Govt - Farmers Are Free to Sell Produce Anywhere

By Daily News Reporter in Dodoma

THE government has announced that it will not put pressure on local farmers to

auction their agricultural produce, especially once they sign any agreement with any processing factory.

Making the revelation here, Deputy Minister for Agriculture, Hussein Bashe, in a statement during his meeting with Taruchina cashew growers association of Tanzania and Mtwarabased cashew nut processing firm- Akros Limited, further said the two parties also inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to facilitate the sale of farmers' cashew nuts to the factory.

The association has a total of 160 farmers and expects to harvest at least 42 tonnes in the initial stage of their 4 ,000 hectares this year.

He said the government's plan is to ensure that all farmers benefit from their hard work and if possible weed out the burden of middlemen.

He said the government is working to put in place appropriate procedures for contract farming in an attempt to preserve both the rights of the farmers and the industries.

Mr Bashe, however, quickly warned that contract farming must be implemented with all extra-caution to ensure a win-win result.

Elaborating, the deputy minister also emphasized on the importance of open auction for all crops that were produced outside the contracts' farming, adding that the approach is suitable and would ensure all farmers benefit.

"Only those with contract won't be pushed to have their crops auctioned at an open bidding arena. However, we want to make it clear that farmers and their factories must ensure that each party benefit in the process," he noted.

On his part, Mr Victorious Kamuntu, the association secretary told the deputy minister that the association is working on revolutionizing the farming business.

He said more farmers have now learnt that individual farming is no longer paying and that through a group collaboration, there more benefits.

Mr Kamuntu said their association is committed to liberating all farmers within the group by adopting business strategies that will attract others to replicate.

"We're setting the lead so that others could also learn and follow. We want farmers' group to become more powerful, because the association wants to avoid selling raw cashew nut and that has so far been possible with contract farming," he pointed out.

The secretary equally noted that the MoU signed with the farmers' group is specific on processed cashew nut, adding that the firm is also open for negotiation on buying the raw cashew nuts.