The information is provided by Angop, which cites statements by the president of the cooperative, Albino Fernandes. The official indicated that in addition to tomatoes, there are also other products in the same condition, such as beans, sweet potatoes, bananas and onions. In this way, peasants have suffered enormous losses with the marketing of their agricultural campaign, taking into account production costs.
"A bag of fertilizer and another of urea, both weighing 50 kilos, are currently costing 30,000 kwanzas. Five hundred grams of tomato seed is worth 1,500 kwanzas, and with the currently low prices of the products on the market, the approximately 500 cooperative members are unmotivated", he explained.
Regarding the case of tomatoes – in which more than 900 tonnes were produced – he said that the box is being sold at 900 kwanzas and that, taking into account the cost of production, it should be sold at around 5,000 kwanzas.
The causes of this problem are related to the lack of transport for the products, as well as the sale in the parallel market at low prices.
The farm requested state support to combat this setback, and the director of the Provincial Office for Integrated Development of Benguela, Samuel Maleze, said that an investigation will be carried out into the situation.
However, and taking into account the great difficulties that the flow of fresh produce entails, he suggested new ways to counteract the deterioration of products, such as the processing of tomatoes. Dehydrated tomatoes, in tomato pulp or tomato paste are some of the examples mentioned by the official: "There is a vast range of opportunities", he emphasized, quoted by Angop.
Samuel Maleze was also asked about the tomato processing plant installed in Dombe Grande, which has been inoperative since its completion, and also about an industry producing packaging cans, delivered in a tender to the company Dombe Limitada and also stopped.
"This company is currently working on its rehabilitation, since it was vandalized, they removed almost everything that had already been installed, due to the several years that it was closed", he explained.
The official added that the lack of energy from the public network is another challenge for the industries in the province, which also counts on the intervention of the Government to facilitate access to energy.
