SWABI, July 8: The purchase of flue-cured virginia (FCV) tobacco will begin on Saturday. Companies and traders have been notified to begin purchasing tobacco from July 9. Sources in Pakistan Tobacco Company and Lakson Tobacco Company said on Friday that the PTC would begin purchasing the FCV on Saturday in Mardan district and on July 11 in the Swabi district. The purchase would be continue for about 50-days by all the major companies and the Pakistan Tobacco Board (PTB) had already told the buyers to begin buying the FCV between July 9 and 15.

The buying of ‘White Patta’ tobacco was in full swing in the district and both the traders and companies had already purchased more than 50 per cent of their quota.

The sources said that the total demand of WP tobacco in the current year was 23.15 million-kg.

However, a great quantity had been purchased by traders and sniff (naswar) makers and even the WP tobacco has been sent to Afghanistan.

The total requirement of FCV tobacco was 59.842 million kg, the sources said.

The total demand for dark air-cured tobacco was 1.425 million kg. According to the Pakistan Tobacco Board only four companies would purchase the variety.

The total barely tobacco demand, the sources said, was 1.765 million kg. The PTC would purchase 750,000 kg; LTC one million kg; and Sarhad Tobacco Industry 15,000 kg.

Meanwhile, the Anjuman-i-Kashthkaran, Kisan Board and Awam-i-Zarat demanded that tobacco prices should be increased owing to current inflation.

They said that inflation had been increased manifold, agriculture tax imposed, fertilizer and pesticides prices were rising and above all financial help had not been provided to growers.

The companies and traders, they said, would not be allowed to purchase tobacco on rock-bottom prices. They also demanded the implementation of tobacco marketing law-MLO 487.

According to the law the prices of tobacco should be increased every year and the companies should not be allowed to buy tobacco on the previous year’s prices.