Tobacco imports suspended

Malawi’s government has suspended the importation of tobacco leaves into the country with immediate effect following failure by growers and buyers to agree on prices, PANA reported on Tuesday. An official of the Agriculture ministry was quoted as saying the decision was taken to save the country’s economy. “Tobacco is our lifeline. We had to remove anything that is seen to affect the sales,” the official told PANA. The country’s Tobacco Association, the body representing growers, accused processing companies of deliberately fixing prices by flooding the market with imported leaves, thereby forcing prices down.