By Yemi Akintomide/Akure
The Ondo government is set to boost production and marketing of cocoa in the state with its announcement on Tuesday of plan to establish a commodity exchange body.
The body would be saddled with the sole responsibility of sanitizing cocoa business and afford farmers the chance to reap the fruit of their labour.
The Commissioner for Information, Mr. Kayode Akinmade and the Attorney General of the state, Mr. Eyitayo Jegede, who disclosed this in Akure while briefing newsmen on the outcome of this week's executive council meeting, said that the establishment of the body would ensure cocoa farmers get the right returns on their graded cocoa beans.
The commissioners disclosed that the state executive council gave approval for the setting up of the body when it realized that cocoa farmers were being ripped off and that cocoa which used to be one of the highest revenue yielding products for the state was drifting into oblivion.
The commodity exchange, according to them would be in charge of pricing, formulate new regulations for cocoa business, buy from farmers and determine prices based on what is obtained at the international market.
It would equally put a stop to the smuggling of cocoa out of the state to neighbouring states for grading.
"The commodity exchange board will fix the price of cocoa based on the current price from the international market, it will be a forum where farmers and marketers meet to determine the business of cocoa as well as protect the interest of the farmers. As it is at present only the marketers are benefitting from cocoa business.
"The state government is trying to get the maximum value from cocoa and protect the interest of the farmers. It will be similar to the Security and Exchange Commission but different from the previous cocoa boards which did not allow market forces to determine prices," he added.
Ondo state has five out of the seven functional cocoa processing factories and the total out put of the state at present stands at 40 percent of the total national out put.
The commissioner for justice explained that necessary legal frame work to facilitate the take off of the board soonest was being fine-tuned with the state House of Assembly.
