Edible Cooking Oil Association of Malawi (Ecoam) and the Poultry Industry Association of Malawi (Piam) have proposed the ban of soya exports, stating that the ban will lead the country to earn more foreign exchange while promoting value addition to the soya value chain.

Writing to the Ministry of Trade, the two firms have argued that the refined cooking oil industry has capacity to process all the soya Malawi has produced this year. In their individual petitions to the Minister of Trade Sosten Gwengwe, the bodies have argued that soya exports deprive factories of raw materials, therefore hindering employment opportunities and survival of the companies altogether.

In March this year, Ecoam has penned the Ministry of Finance and MRA on the impact of the reintroduction of 16.5% VAT on cooking oil, stating that the development will see a retrenchment of workers and a price hike.