Warning for foreigners

 By ZACHERY PER

FOREIGN owned coffee exporting and processing firms should own at least ten hectares of coffee plantation to continue operations in the country, an official says.

Agriculture and Livestock Minister Tommy Tomscoll said if the companies do not then they have to say why they cannot do that.

“Any foreign coffee companies with no coffee trees covering at least ten or more hectares will have to explain why they should not grow ten hectares of coffee gardens or else they will be shown the door,” he said.

He said that during his visit to Jiwaka last Saturday to launch a coffee nursery facility that will supply coffee seedlings to coffee growers in the province.

Tomscoll said Coffee Industry Corporation(CIC) under the new revitalisation and strategic plan has started to issue exporting licenses to each districts of coffee growing provinces.

He said Jiwaka would get three licences for Jimi, North Waghi and Anglimp-South Waghi districts.

“We reserved 14 coffee export licences for women as we want to encourage women to get involved in coffee exports and two licences for Coffee Cooperative Groups,” he said.

He said Brazil and Vietnam may produce quantity but we need to produce quality and CIC will regulate the industry in partnership with the Government to improve overall production. “Priority of the past governments was not in coffee but now the government gives priority to coffee by giving K32.4 million for coffee development, with such support the CIC is venturing to such projects of coffee nursery developments,” he said.

Tomscoll stressed the need for farmers to get maximum benefit.

CIC under the programme aims to plant at least 1.5 million trees and the nursery in Jiwaka will be the distribution point.