The Tobacco Commission would like to address concerns about the confiscation of nested tobacco in the 2024 selling season.
The Tobacco Industry Act (2024) defines nesting as ‘(a) the concealment of substandard tobacco within a bale; or (b)the concealment of stems, scraps, loose leaf or any other object within a bale of graded tobacco bundles, with an intention to deceive a buyer on quality and weight of tobacco’ (Tobacco Industry Act (2024), 25(5)).
Nesting is a deliberate undertaking to cheat which compromises the integrity of Malawi tobacco. Any acts aimed at cheating in the tobacco industry are, therefore, punishable.
The law further states: ‘Where a person offers for sale, or has sold, on a tobacco floor, nested tobacco, the Commission shall confiscate the nested tobacco bales’ (Tobacco Industry Act (2024), 96 (8)).
On the basis on the aforementioned provisions in the Act, this selling season the Tobacco Commission has indeed confiscated all nested tobacco bales at the selling floors. The confiscated tobacco will be sent for rehandling after which the crop will be sold under the Tobacco Commission number.
Proceeds of the sale of such tobacco will be in the custody of the regulator until the processing of relevant administrative penalties is concluded. All concerned growers will be informed of the outcome of the process accordingly.
The Tobacco Commission is appealing to all growers to desist from all forms of cheating in the production and sale of their tobacco to avoid inconveniences and to preserve the integrity of the crop.
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