Wants LACRA, Commerce Establish Standardized Market Structure
Monrovia, Liberia – Athanase Kintiga, a Liberian coco entrepreneur and the general manager of the Substantial Trade Group of Companies, is urging the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and the Liberia Agriculture Commodity Regulatory Authority to create a uniform pricing structure for the import and export of cocoa nationwide.
Speaking on Thursday, October 23, 2025, Kintiga stated that the Liberia Coco industry nationwide is being negatively impacted by the absence of regulated market structure and price. He said that the coco trader buy from local farmers according to the prices on the global market, which he believes will support the agriculture sector’s expansion and sustainable development in Liberia.
According to him, when the price is low on the international market, they buy in huge quantity but when the market price is high, they buy in low quantity. He noted that when the corporation brings the agent to the warehouse, LACRA and the Ministry of Commerce must provide a uniform pricing for each buyer.
“The problem of unfair pricing is one of the main issues facing the coco industry. We purchase from farmers in accordance with the pricing and system structure of the international market. We now purchase more when the price is low and less when it is high. This worldwide market pricing is killing us, so I’m pleading with LACRA and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry to develop a uniform pricing system for the coco industry. We believe it will level the playing field and help us accomplish more for the sector once that is done,” he said.
He asserted that the implementation of equal and uniform pricing by LACRA and Commerce will help in resolving the existing storage issues and farmer-buyer pricing disputes. The general manager of Substantial Trade Group of Companies added that since Liberia is new to the coco industry compared to countries like Ghana and Ivory Coast, which have been in the business for many years, they also face the challenge of gaining the trust of their customers when exporting coco from Liberia.
According to Kintiga, “If you want to get a contract, they give you contract based on what they have on the international market and that is not enriching us because we have our family too. We want the fix pricing to empower our famers and help us generate more resources. Also, we want the government to concentrate on the issues of roads rehabilitation across the country because it’s affecting us. We are paying lots of taxes and fees and we are not benefiting anything.”
Reported by: Prince Saah
