Category: Leaf

Zimbabwe Farmers Demand Premiums

Photo: Taco Tuinstra
Following a 30 percent increase in tobacco export earnings to $1.3 billion in 2023, Zimbabwean tobacco farmers are pushing for increased premiums, according to The Herald.
In 2023, Zimbabwe exported tobacco products worth $1.3 billion, up from $998.1 million in 2022, according to the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZimStats). In volume, the increase was 20 percent for the same period.
“The huge gap between what ends in the farmer’s pocket and what exporters take home is a big anomaly that needs to be addressed,” said George Seremwe, chairman of the Zimbabwe Tobacco Growers Association (ZTGA). “Participation of farmers in the value addition chain needs to be enhanced by making sure they take ownership of the crop all the way to the market.”
Seremwe stated that there should be a premium price paid back to farmers after the value addition process as happened in the past. He also argued for a model that rewards farmers in terms of export earnings.
“We used to have export retention schemes from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe. This needs to be revived so that the farmer gets more value from the crop,” the ZTGA chair said.
“The grower is the weakest link in this matrix and needs protection from (the) government,” said Zimbabwe Progressive Tobacco Farmers Association (ZPTFA) president Mutasa Mutandwa.
“The Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board needs to thoroughly monitor contractors as per the compliance administration framework in order to find out what inputs have been given to farmers versus the crop they are buying,” said Mutandwa.
“Our crop is fetching high prices on the international market, as it is used as a blender, but the farmer is not benefiting. There is need for massive investment in tobacco processing plants to increase exports of high-priced manufactured products,” explained the ZPTFA president.
The Tobacco Value Chain Transformation Plan aims to increase value addition from 2 percent to 30 percent by 2025 to reach a $5 billion tobacco industry.
“The price at the floors can only be enhanced by improving the quality of the leaf as buyers prefer clean and clear styles,” said Shadreck Makombe, president of the Zimbabwe Commercial Farmers Union. “There is need to have more investment in processing to enhance value addition.”
February 6, 2024
Diversification in Africa: FCTC No Help

Photo: Taco Tuinstra
While participants in the World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) are keen for tobacco growers to abandon the golden leaf, farmers around the world say they receive little support in switching to alternative livelihoods.
Interviewed by the International Tobacco Growers’ Association, Ryan Swales, president of the Zimbabwe Tobacco Association (ZTA), said he has not witnessed any attempts from the global health body to assist with diversification.
“I do not see any help from the WHO FCTC helping the diversification of tobacco farmers in Zimbabwe,” he was quoted as saying. “We are on our own, and a big proportion of large-scale growers have diversified on their own, with no help from anyone else, be it the tobacco companies or the WHO FCTC. If you ask many growers if they know who the WHO FCTC are, you will be met with a blank stare!”
This sentiment was echoed by ZTA CEO Rodney Ambrose, who noted that for Zimbabwe’s tens of thousands of small-scale farmers, there simply are no viable diversification options. “Our ministry engaged in a study on behalf of WHO FCTC some years back, which clearly concluded that there are no economically viable crops other than tobacco for our small-scale farmers. Tobacco is their livelihood.
“However, we are always willing to further explore diversification options that the WHO FCTC may propose.”
In Malawi, tobacco growers have received support from the Foundation for a Smoke-Free World as the country seeks to broaden its economic base.
February 6, 2024
Philippines Urged To Support Farmers at COP

Photo: Phiilip Morris Fortune Tobacco Co.
Filipino tobacco growers are asking their government to advocate for their livelihoods at the 10^th Conference of the Parties (COP10) to the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), which is scheduled to take place Feb. 5-10 in Panama.
“Our lives are deeply intertwined with tobacco farming,” Leonardo Montemayor, a former agriculture secretary and board chairman of the Federation of Free Farmers, told The Manila Standard. “It is a way of life and our means of survival amid harsh economic headwinds. With the Department of Agriculture roadmap affirming its long-term support for tobacco farming, we hope that the Philippine government will take that commitment to heart when championing our industry in this upcoming COP.
The National Tobacco Administration (NTA) recently launched the Sustainable Tobacco Enhancement Program (STEP), an initiative aimed at boosting indigenous tobacco cultivation, particularly in Mindanao.
Saturnino Distor, president of the Philippine Tobacco Growers Association, said STEP would improve tobacco farmers prospects, especially with the regulation of safer alternatives to cigarettes like vapes and e-cigarettes. “Studies and science show these are better than cigarettes. That’s where the industry is headed, so we have hope that tobacco farming will continue,” he said.
“Tobacco farming sustains millions of farmers and their families, as well as workers in the industry,” Distor said. “Switching crops requires significant investment in new infrastructure. If the future of alternative products is uncertain, what about the future of farmers? We appeal for compassionate and humane policies.”
The Philippine tobacco sector employs more than 2.1 million people and contributes significantly to government income, with PHP160 billion ($2.86 billion) collected in excise taxes in 2022, according to the NTA.
February 2, 2024
Zimbabwe Exports Up

Photo: Taco Tuinstra
Zimbabwe earned nearly 3.5 times as much from tobacco exports in January than it did in the same month of 2023, reports The Herald.
The country exported leaf worth $274.7 million last month, compared with $80.9 million a year ago. The golden leaf raked in just over $1.2 billion from the more than 233 million kilograms exported in 2023.
According to the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board, exporters shipped 37.8 million kg to date this year, with the bulk of leaf going to China, which has so far imported 30.2 million kg valued at $248.8 million. The average price was $8.24 per kg.
African countries imported the second largest amount of Zimbabwean tobacco at 3.2 million kg worth $9.3 million at an average price of $2.89 per kg.
European Union countries imported 1.3 million kg of tobacco from Zimbabwe valued at $2.6 million at an average price of $2.09 a kg.
For next season, Zimbabwe’s tobacco growers have thus far planted 113,101 hectares, compared to 117,645 ha in the same period last year.
The decrease in tobacco planting is largely attributed to the delayed start of the rainy season.
February 2, 2024
Farmers Told to Destroy Seedbeds or Risk Arrest

Image: Global Image Archive
Tobacco farmers in Zimbabwe must destroy seedbeds or risk fines or imprisonment of up to two years, reports The Sunday Mail.
The revised tobacco planting deadline passed on Jan. 15, following a pushback from Dec. 31.
Zimbabwe’s Plant Pests and Disease Act requires farmers to destroy all living tobacco plants on seedbeds by Dec. 31.
“The last date of destroying all tobacco plants in seedbeds was Jan. 15, 2024, and in this case, it passed, and farmers need to abide by that,” said Leonard Munamati, acting chief director of Agricultural Advisory and Rural Development Services.
“Pathogens, such as potato virus Y and bushy top virus, are a result of poor management and failure to comply with the regulation dates,” said Cleopas Chinheya, head of Kutsaga’s plant health services. “Clearing seedbeds breaks the life cycle of pests and pathogens and viral transmission from seedbeds or fields.”
“Complying to the regulated dates does not benefit the enforcers but the farmers,” said George Seremwe, president of the Tobacco Association of Zimbabwe. “If we let pests and disease carry over on our land, it is us who suffer.”
“We always urge our fellow farmers to be responsible in their operations,” said Seremwe.
January 31, 2024
Growers Worried About South African Tobacco Bill

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Small-scale tobacco growers in South Africa raised concerns about the impact of proposed legislation during public hearings in the Eastern Cape province.
To strengthen public health protection measures, lawmakers are considering a bill that would ban smoking in all indoor public places and certain outdoor areas; prohibit cigarettes sales in vending machines; require standardized tobacco packaging and ban the display of tobacco product at points of sale. The bill would also regulate electronic nicotine delivery systems and non-nicotine delivery systems.
During the Eastern Cape gathering, tobacco growers described the relative wealth that tobacco cultivation had afforded them in an area suffering from unemployment and poverty.
“When we were producing vegetables, me and my family were staying in a one-roomed mud house but immediately when we started producing tobacco leaf, I was able to build myself a beautiful six-roomed house, Nomfusi Kotsele, a member of the Katala cooperative in Butterworth, was quoted as saying in a report by South Africa’s Parliament. “I was also able to take my children to school so that they can have a better future than I had.”
Participants in the meeting also cautioned against the unintended consequences of overregulation. They pointed to South Africa’s thriving illicit cigarette trade, which exploded in the wake of a Covid-19 prohibition on tobacco sales and has remained above pre-pandemic levels long after the ban ended.
The hearings are part of a nationwide public participation process to garner citizens’ views on the bill. Similar consultations have already taken place in North West, Mpumalanga, Limpopo, Free State and Gauteng.
January 30, 2024
Zimbabwe Farmers: Start 2024 Market Early

Image: Tobacco Reporter archive
Tobacco farmers in Zimbabwe have called for an early start to the 2024 marketing season to prevent potential storage losses, reports The Herald. The Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) has indicated that it is still going through farmers’ representations and still licensing buyers.
Currently, 50 percent of the harvested irrigated tobacco is ready for marketing.
The TIMB is consulting stakeholders on suggested dates for opening the 2024 marketing season, according to Chelesani Tsarwe, TIMB public affairs officer. The board is expected to meet at the end of January to deliberate on licensing buyers.
“To ensure a good harvest, growers are encouraged to apply fertilizers correctly, undertake weed, disease, pest and sucker control,” said Tsarwe. “They must ensure they have good, functional and efficient curing facilities and safeguard proper handling of cured leaves to avoid losses.”
“More than 50 percent of the irrigated crop has been harvested and cured, so as farmers, we have suggested that floors be opened from Feb. 15 going onward,” said George Seremwe, Zimbabwe Tobacco Growers Association chairman. “Another reason for this consideration is inadequate storage facilities for some of our farmers as well as the need to raise cash from the sale of a few bales to meet labor payments.”
According to Seremwe, tobacco profitability is being compromised by high interest rates charged by loan sharks.
“Farmer representatives have indicated that an early start to the season would help them clear loans, reduce borrowing incidences, reduce risks of storing graded tobacco on farms and generate foreign currency early to positively stimulate the market,” said Rodney Ambrose, Zimbabwe Tobacco Association CEO. “Farmer viability remains a major concern as costs of production continue to increase against static floor prices.”
“We don’t want to open the market and stop due to inadequate volumes, so floors should open when there is a lot of tobacco ready for the market,” said Monica Chinamasa, Zimbabwe National Farmers Union president, who said the marketing season should open after Easter rather than earlier. “The price matrix is generated from the auction floors, so it’s critical to have large tobacco volumes in the auctions for effective price discovery.”
“The government shifted [the] tobacco seedbed destruction date to Jan. 15 to allow planting to continue, and this should also result in dates of opening of floors set for early or mid-April,” said Victor Mariranyika, Tobacco Farmers Union Trust president, who is also in favor of a late start to the season.
January 23, 2024
Malawi Licenses 250 Million Kg

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The Tobacco Commission (TC) of Malawi has licensed the production of more than 248 million kg in the upcoming growing season, reports Malawi24.
To give growers that missed the December registration an opportunity to participate in the crop, the TC recently extended the deadline to Jan. 31.
TC Public Relations Officer Theophilus Chigwenembe said the commission has not encountered any major challenges affecting the first round of crop estimates survey for the 2023/2024 farming season, which started on 15th this month.
Despite concerns about Malawi’s heavy economic reliance on tobacco production, the government continues to view the golden leaf as a critical resource for the economy.
During a recent industry conference in Malawi, government representatives stressed the importance of compliance and data-driven strategies.
“We believe that high quality data management will help all stakeholders not only track and trace our tobacco but also guide minimum performance levels that are expected of tobacco leaf suppliers in areas such as sustainable agriculture, environment and human rights,” Medrina Muloza Banda, principal secretary in the ministry of agriculture, was quoted as saying by the Nyasa Times.
“Ultimately, this will make our tobacco compliant with international standards, thereby making our leaf more compliant to the global demand.”
January 21, 2024
Mozambique Leaf Exports Down

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Mozambique exported tobacco worth $49.4 million in the first nine months of 2023, a quarter less than in the previous year, reports Club Mozambique, citing central bank figures.
According to the Bank of Mozambique, tobacco exports in the first three quarters of 2022 amounted to $66.4 million.
Mozambique has the world’s eighth largest tobacco growing area, according to the World Health Organization. With tobacco cultivated over 91,469 hectares, Mozambique is third largest grower in the African region after Zimbabwe (112,770 hectares) and Malawi (100,962).
Brazil, by comparison, cultivates, 357,230 hectares.
January 19, 2024
AOI Brazil Invests in Seed Production

Image: AOI
Alliance One International has opened a seed industrialization unit at its Global Research, Development and Deployment Center in Passo do Sobrado, Brazil.
Alliance One is a major supplier in Brazil’s tobacco seed market, with tobacco grown from the company’s varieties comprising approximately 40 percent of the tobacco produced in the country. According to AOI, the new seed industrialization unit positions the company for global growth as a leader in tobacco crop solutions with the ability to provide customers and farmers with best-in-class genetics.
“Our new unit provides us with greater quality control of our seed products and makes it possible for all activities to be governed by our internal integrated quality management system,” said Helio Moura, vice president of global agronomy at Alliance One, in a statement. “Improved quality control opens doors to sell our seed in new markets at a faster speed, increases customer and farmer satisfaction, and drives efficiencies within our business.”
According to AOI, the new equipment furthers the company’s efforts to combine cutting-edge technology with advanced agricultural practices to produce high-quality seeds for tobacco production. The machinery is designed to handle small seeds such as tobacco, a rare specification in various markets, and perform a range of essential seed processing functions including threshing, grading, upgrading, pelleting, drying and seed finishing. These capabilities help improve seed germination, stimulate healthy, consistent crop development and increase yield—key elements to improving farmer livelihoods and meeting customer volume requirements and specifications.
The unit has an annual processing capacity of nearly 2 metric tons and the ability to pelletize more than 200,000 cans of seed for sale each year. “The company’s global research, development and deployment center plays a fundamental role in promoting quality, productivity and sustainability in tobacco,” said Moura. “Our agronomic input packages are tested at the center before going to the field, positioning our Company to deliver extremely competitive genetics to the farmer.”
Alliance One says its genetics promote higher quality, yield and disease resistance in tobacco crops and are proven to reduce the amount of crop inputs, such as crop protection agents, fertilizer and nutrients necessary for production. This reduction results in a lower cost of production for the farmer while driving forward a more sustainable industry.
“Our strategy has allowed us to develop global solutions and approaches, respecting the culture and speed of each market, aiming to strengthen the future of and bring efficiency to our supply chain,” said Moura.
AOI says it remains committed to the innovation of sustainable agriculture practices and driving advancements in the agriculture sector that will support farmers and customers across the globe.
January 19, 2024