Coffee farmers get market boost

The ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and Co-operatives has allowed coffee growers to sell their crop at international auctions. The deputy minister for Agriculture, Food Security and Co-operatives, Dr Mathayo David, told the National Assembly in Dodoma yesterday that the government had put in place plans aimed at securing handsome prices for local coffee at international markets and with individual buyers.

The minister was answering a question asked by Savelina Mwijage (Special Seats—CCM) who had wanted to know what the government was doing to prevent coffee growers from selling their cash crop at throw-away prices.

Dr Mathayo told the August House that the government also planned to promote the country’s coffee at international fairs through the Tanzania Coffee Marketing Board. He said a kilogram of Robusta coffee sold at $1.49 (Sh2,235) during the 2008/09 period, while raw coffee fetched Sh800 per kilogram during the time under review.

He added that during the 2009/10 period coffee sold at $1.25 a kilogram, citing the absence of strong co-operatives, that could protect farmers from selling their crops at cheap prices, as one of the reasons for the poor state of affairs.