By Morlu F. Freeman Sr.
LOFA COUNTY — Cocoa farmers in Lower Lofa, particularly within Gbandi Chiefdom, are calling on the Liberia Agriculture Commodity Regulatory Authority (LACRA) to establish and enforce an effective pricing system to protect farmers and ensure fairness across the cocoa value chain.
According to the farmers, cocoa buyers from neighboring Guinea and Sierra Leone often enter local communities and purchase cocoa at varying and unregulated prices, in the absence of monitoring by LACRA or other government authorities.
“Imagine, my brother, buyers from Sierra Leone and Guinea come and buy our cocoa at their own prices,” said Kanneh Salia during an interview.
Continuing, he noted: “Some buy at LD$200 per kilo, while others pay between LD$300 and LD$400 per kilo. There is no stable price right now. That is why we are calling on LACRA to step in by deploying its agents across Lofa so farmers can be guided on where and how to sell cocoa and other agricultural commodities.”
An investigative tour of the Lower Lofa belt confirmed that many cocoa farmers sell their produce to buyers from Guinea and Sierra Leone, largely due to the limited visibility and presence of LACRA personnel in the communities.
Some farmers further alleged that cross-border buyers exploit the cocoa trade through unfavorable foreign exchange practices.
“They don’t easily accept Liberian dollars in their countries,” one farmer explained. “When you try to exchange Liberian dollars for their currency, the rate drops badly, and we lose money.”
Meanwhile, the cocoa farmers are also appealing to the national government to provide support in the form of fertilizers, agricultural chemicals, and improved seedlings to help boost cocoa production and improve livelihoods in the region.
