Kava shortage

As a result of the global COVID-19 pandemic, flight cancellations have caused chaos among Fijian yaqona lovers in Australia, especially Sydney.

For any yaqona available it costs around $500 to AU$600 a kilogram. All Fijian yaqona sellers have been out of stock for almost three months and either they are buying through the Tongans or via New Zealand.

It’s quite the opposite in prices compared to how much you could get for a kilogram of kava back in Fiji.

Most Fijians gathering in Australia to date have gone well without any yaqona and they are hoping for flights to open soon so that the yaqona stock could return to normal.

With borders to Queensland and Victoria closed, this has made it harder for Fijians living on either side because they are depending on each other.

Hopefully, the two Governments come up with a solution of getting across some kava somehow; it will benefit the farmers as well.