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  • Zimbabwe to Double Shisha Output

    Zimbabwe to Double Shisha Output

    Despite only increasing planted land by 25%, Zimbabwe is expected to see its Shisha crop double in 2025. Mostly being produced under a contract spearheaded by Cavendish Lloyd Zimbabwe Pvt Ltd. (CLZ), the increase in production is being attributed to the adoption of good agronomic practices, collaboration between growers and technicians, and favorable weather conditions.

    “We are projecting a total of 800,000 kilograms of cured Shisha tobacco by the end of the season, a significant increase from last year’s 400,000 kg,” Dr Rebecca Manford, chief executive officer for CLZ said. “The price for the crop has remained strong, with the highest price recorded so far at US$5.75 per kg, an increase from last season’s US$5.70.”

    Shisha was introduced commercially in Zimbabwe in 2022, and last year was negatively impacted by the El Nino drought. The number of growers increased from 65 to 125 this year, yet the land committed only increased from 388 to 485 hectares. Production of the crop has presented farmers with more investment opportunities to widen their farming business as part of the Tobacco Value Chain Transformation Plan.

  • Zimbabwe Growers Warned Against Illegal Tobacco Seeds 

    Zimbabwe Growers Warned Against Illegal Tobacco Seeds 

    Researchers have warned against illegal tobacco seed imports, which could destroy Zimbabwe’s viable tobacco sector, which was recently earmarked to grow to a $5 billion industry. In a recent notice, Kutsaga Research said the institution had received numerous reports of illegal imports and sales of uncertified flue-cured tobacco seed varieties.

    “This includes some unprescribed old fertile lines and varieties and also landraces purportedly sold as Kutsaga hybrids,” Kutsaga officials said. “Unfortunately, growers who have cultivated these varieties have suffered huge economic losses due to their inherently low or poor agronomic attributes which result in crop and leaf that falls short of market standards for flue-cured tobacco.”

    An illegal variety is that which has not been prescribed and approved by the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) on the recommendation of the Tobacco Research Board (TRB) for commercial production in Zimbabwe. Kutsaga Research said its unique tobacco attributes were safeguarded by proven and widely adapted locally bred genetics as well as tested and approved foreign varieties.

    Kutsaga said its rigorous industry-wide testing protocols (including agronomic, chemical, smoke quality) guarantee the sought-after quality of all tobacco varieties bred locally or imported in Zimbabwe.

    A farmer from Gutu, Masvingo, is counting his losses after unknowingly buying cigar wrapper type seed from unauthorized and unscrupulous sources, thinking it was flue cured, only to realize the mistake at reaping. The same unfortunate circumstances extended to farmers in Gokwe South and Karoi, who planted varieties that did not align with any recognized tobacco strains.

    Kutsaga Research has warned that growers and merchants will inadvertently suffer financial losses through yield penalties, increased cost in pests and disease control and low value leaf crop (or filler styles).

    “The net effect is that, at the household level, this compromises family income and food security, and at national level, it results in low foreign currency receipts and this goes against the Tobacco Value Chain Transformation Plan and its tenets towards a $5 billion-dollar revenue from the crop,” the institution said.

  • Zimbabwe Tobacco Market Picking Up Steam

    Zimbabwe Tobacco Market Picking Up Steam

    Twenty-three days after Zimbabwe’s tobacco season opened, all parties are reporting to be relatively satisfied with farmers already earning $143 million from 41.6 million kilograms of flue-cured tobacco sold. As is typical for this point in the season, the majority of the tobacco is still in the field, and thus far, the highest-quality product has been scarcely seen.

    According to the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB), 39.2 million kg, valued at $135.2 million, had been sold by contracted growers, while 2.4 million kg, worth $7.7 million, had come from self-financed farmers. Last year, farmers sold 56.7 million kg of flue-cured tobacco valued at $200 million.

    The increase in tobacco production has been attributed to viable prices, an organized market, and the availability of funding through contractors and the government.

    The average price at auction was $3.43 per kg, compared to $3.53 last year, but growers are confident that the price will continue to rise as they grade and bail the best of their product.

    “The participation of merchants has really improved,” said Sam Garabha, operations manager for Premier Tobacco Auction Floors. “Our farmers are quite happy and excited with the offers they are receiving at the auction floors, although we expect better quality. During the past week, we were receiving lower and middle grades, but, as the harvest continues, we are noticing significant improvements in prices.”

    Source: “The Sunday Mail”, Harare; 6 Apr 2025

    Farmers pocket US$143m as auction activity picks up
  • Zimbabwe Court Approves Urgent Hearing in Pacific Cigarette Tax Dispute

    Zimbabwe Court Approves Urgent Hearing in Pacific Cigarette Tax Dispute

    Pacific Cigarette Company secured approval from Zimbabwe’s High Court for an urgent hearing after it entered into voluntary business rescue over a $19 million tax dispute. The demand from the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) rendered Pacific insolvent, threatening the operations of the nation’s second-largest indigenous tobacco producer.

    The case centers on whether the tax obligations imposed on Pacific during its corporate rescue contravene established insolvency protections or represent enforceable liabilities under Zimbabwean law.

    Pacific argues that the tax demand infringes insolvency protection and so its formal request for a tax clearance certificate from ZIMRA should be granted. The authority, through its tax and revenue management system, established conditions for issuing such certificates in 2023, which Pacific asserts it complied with yet faces contested liabilities following ZIMRA’s revised taxation approach for toll manufacturers. This change saddled Pacific with the disputed tax obligations, compounded by ZIMRA’s garnishment of its bank accounts to make sure the money was paid.

    Justice Gibson Mandaza recognized the urgency of Pacific’s application and directed the case to proceed. He said the draft order under challenge required adjudication on its merits, specifically concerning whether a company under corporate rescue is exempt from tax obligations. The court acknowledged that corporate rescue, a process governed by insolvency laws, aimed to enable companies to reorganize their affairs without undue liabilities and needed to be assessed on a case-by-case basis and could not be presumed at the earlier stages.

  • Opinion: Zimbabwe’s Tobacco Chain Needs to Come Together

    Opinion: Zimbabwe’s Tobacco Chain Needs to Come Together

    Zimbabwe’s tobacco marketing 2025 season opened last week with the first bale selling for $4.65 per kg. That price was predictably down from last year’s $4.92 as the El Nino drought created a shortage in the tobacco market. Last year’s output was 235 million kilograms, down from 2023’s record 296 million kg. For 2025, projections are in the 280 million kg region, however, more plantings and favorable weather keep the National Development Strategy’s ultimate 300 million kg goal a possibility.

    While growers are doing their part in the system, Obert Chifamba wrote in his opinion piece for The Herald that more needs to be done as a nation to make the cash crop profitable for the people doing the work.   

    “Just two seasons ago [we were] close to the target of 300 million kg,” Chifamba wrote, “which means production-wise, we have achieved our intentions, hence the need to identify and address the issues now standing between the country and its target.

    “Delays in disbursing the $60 million tobacco revolving fund meant to localize the crop’s funding and support growers have not made the situation any better, with the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe said to be working on the modalities of disbursing it. Local funding should take care of 70% of the cost of production. This is also one of the strategies the government is pushing to effectively implement to ensure the country stops relying on foreign capital for the crop, which will see the funders taking between 80 and 90% of the money generated from tobacco out of the country leaving producers with very little.”

    Chifamba also points out that 95% of the tobacco produced gets exported out of the country raw, allowing countries that import and process it to reap the majority of the profits, and that local growers are often taken advantage of by foreign sponsors with “notorious price ceilings” and incomplete purchase contracts. 

    “It is critical for the tobacco industry to do some self-introspection and see where the wheels are always coming off,” Chifamba wrote. “Maybe it will take the intervention of the government or some independent observer to pinpoint where the tobacco juggernaut needs revitalization to function more fluidly and profitably for all parties involved.”

  • Zimbabwe’s Tobacco Market Opens

    Zimbabwe’s Tobacco Market Opens

    Zimbabwe’s 2025 tobacco marketing season opened this week (March 5) with stakeholders upbeat about increased output due to favorable weather, contrasting to last year’s El Nino-induced drought.

    “We are expecting a bigger crop, much bigger than last year, over 280 million kg, and I think it will sell well,” said Patrick Devenish, chairman of the industry regulator Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board.

    Last year, Zimbabwe produced more than 240 million kg worth $1.4 billion in export earnings. China is the largest importer of Zimbabwe’s tobacco and is expected to have high demand for its top-quality leaf this year. 

  • Zimbabwe Bans Non-Contract Tobacco 

    Zimbabwe Bans Non-Contract Tobacco 

    With Zimbabwe expecting another banner tobacco crop, the nation’s Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) continues to work toward regulating the market and protecting farmers from unfair prices and practices. TIMB’s latest directive, made just days ahead of the opening of the marketing season, says that all free-funded tobacco must be sold through the auction system this year. 

    Tobacco production is grown under two arrangements in Zimbabwe, namely contract and self-financing. Previously, farmers and merchants were allowed to buy tobacco from self-financing farmers outside the auction system on arranged terms, which distorted auction prices, which in turn distorted prices for future contract tobacco.

    “We challenge all the 55 licensed merchants this season that there is no room to buy free tobacco outside auction floors,” said TIMB chief executive officer Emmanuel Matsvaire, adding they will have a zero-tolerance policy for breaches.

    Earlier this year TIMB introduced a biometric registration system, underscoring the regulatory board’s commitment to combating illicit practices, among them side-marketing.

    Last year, Zimbabwe’s tobacco export surged to 243.4 million kilograms, valued at $1.31 billion, an increase from 2023’s $1.23 billion. More plantings and favorable weather suggest the 2025 season will be even better.

  • Zimbabwe Growers Encouraged to Prioritize Quality

    Zimbabwe Growers Encouraged to Prioritize Quality

    Predicting a significant increase in global flavor-grade tobacco supply for 2025, Zimbabwe’s Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) is urging growers to focus on quality by investing in an energy-efficient curing infrastructure, adopting precision farming techniques, and implementing improved agronomic practices.

    For the 2025 season, Zimbabwe saw a 2.75% increase in hectares planted, which combined with improved rainfall distribution and better agronomic practices, puts the projected national output between 280 million and 300 million kg depending on the weather. Last year’s output of 231.7 million kg of flue-cured Virginia tobacco was a 13.1% increase from 2023.

    The anticipated increase in Zimbabwe combined with projections that Brazil’s output will increase from 461.8 million kg in 2024 to at least 650 million kg in 2025 has experts predicting downward pressure on tobacco prices, particularly for middle to low-end grades.

    Tapiwa Masedza, the factory coordinator for the Tian Ze Tobacco Company, said the global demand for tobacco remains robust, with many companies struggling to meet supply orders due to last year’s reduced crop size. That combined with China’s need for top-end grades gives hope that prices will remain stable for premium leaf, however low- to medium-end grades prices are expected to drop.

    “While the anticipated increase in production is a testament to the sector’s resilience and growth, the potential price pressures underscore the need for strategic planning and investment in quality improvement,” Masedza said. “Mixing grades in bales, excessive moisture, and moldy tobacco can lead to discounts or rejections, ultimately affecting profitability.”

    TIMB is trying to help insulate local farmers from potential subdued prices resulting from excess supply with a new pricing system, expected to be implemented April 5. The system will determine the following day’s minimum price based on the average price of all tobacco sold — both at auction and through contracts — across all grades.

  • Zimbabwe Tobacco Market Introduces Biometric System

    Zimbabwe Tobacco Market Introduces Biometric System

    When Zimbabwe’s tobacco auction floors open March 5, the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) announced it will implement measures to ensure only legitimate farmers participate in the market and to prevent side marketing. Chelesani Tsarwe, public affairs officer for the TIMB, said a biometric grower management system will be used to track the country’s largest agricultural export.

    “The new system introduces biometric data capture, linking each farmer’s unique grower number to their fingerprints, as well as the GPS coordinates of their households and farms,” Tsarwe said.

    She added that the information system will be conducted at designated key selling points, and that the country is prioritizing the value-addition of the tobacco leaf locally to boost revenue and create jobs.

    Grown mainly on small-scale farms, Zimbabwe harvested more than 240 million kilograms of tobacco last year, generating more than $1.4 billion in revenue.

  • Kutsaga Celebrates 75 Years, Looks to Expand in Zimbabwe

    Kutsaga Celebrates 75 Years, Looks to Expand in Zimbabwe

    As Kutsaga Research celebrated its 75th anniversary by hosting a tobacco seed and variety field day in Zimbabwe, Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Permanent Secretary  Obert Jiri said the organization needs to continue its good work and spread to the southern part of the nation (regions four and five).

    “The tobacco value chain is currently positively impacting the lives of over 120,000 smallholder farmers; however, these are predominantly in the northern and middle parts of the country,” Jiri said. “Kutsaga should learn from the challenges and success of the Tobacco Value Chain Transformation Plan that ends this year to spearhead the development of climate-smart drought adaptive varieties, research into eco-friendly tobacco curing fuels such as liquid petroleum gas, biogas, and solar energy.”

    The country is recovering from the devastating effect of last year’s El Nino-induced drought that cut production, but this year hopes to match 2023’s record-high 296 million kilograms produced.

    Kutsaga board chair Aaron Denenga said the company was committed to transforming into a self-sustaining agricultural research hub over the next 25 years, leveraging cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence, 3D printing, genetic engineering, and quantum computing.

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