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Tag: tobacco farmers

  • Tanzania Orders Tobacco Buyers to Pay Farmers by Oct. 30

    Tanzania Orders Tobacco Buyers to Pay Farmers by Oct. 30

    Tanzania’s agriculture minister ordered tobacco-buying companies to clear all outstanding payments owed to farmers by Oct. 30, saying there is no justification for delays after tobacco has been sold. Agriculture Minister Daniel Chongolo issued the directive Oct. 3 during a meeting with tobacco industry stakeholders in Tabora, where farmers, Agricultural Marketing Cooperative Societies, buyers, and the Tanzania Tobacco Board discussed challenges, including rising input costs, market access, outdated tobacco-drying technology, and delayed payments to cooperatives and local governments.

    Chongolo also said the government has delayed announcing new tobacco input prices while negotiating lower costs for farmers. He directed stakeholders to hold discussions within 10 days to secure more affordable prices and ordered fertilizer to be distributed to farmers within two weeks. Tabora Regional Commissioner Gerald Mongella called for increased subsidies and faster progress on establishing a fertilizer factory in the region. Meanwhile, Tanzania Tobacco Board Tabora Zone Acting Manager Albert Charles said the number of tobacco buyers has increased from three in the 2020-21 season to 18, potentially giving farmers more market opportunities despite ongoing industry challenges.

    Alliance One Tobacco Tanzania announced that it completed payments to growers and other stakeholders for the 2026 tobacco marketing season, disbursing TZS169.7 billion ($64.7 million) across the tobacco value chain, according to Daily News Tanzania. Growers received TZS154.2 billion ($58.7 million) of the total, with the company saying it had fulfilled its payment obligations for the season.

  • Zimbabwe Urges Tobacco Farmers to Diversify

    Zimbabwe Urges Tobacco Farmers to Diversify

    Zimbabwe’s Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) is urging tobacco farmers to dedicate about 30% of their land to complementary enterprises as they prepare for the 2026-27 season. The board said tobacco should remain the anchor crop, while growers test alternatives such as horticulture, livestock, and food crops to diversify income and reduce exposure to climate and market risks. Zimbabwe is expecting below-normal rainfall this season.

    TIMB said farmers should secure markets before planting, maintain separate financial records for each enterprise, and use existing tobacco infrastructure for other production. Irrigation systems could support crops such as wheat, potatoes, and vegetables, while curing barns could be used to dry paprika, chilies, and herbs. The board also highlighted export opportunities for higher-value crops, including blueberries, macadamia nuts, avocados, citrus, and specialty horticultural products.

    The push comes after Zimbabwe’s 2026 tobacco marketing season recorded 353.8 million kg sold for $882.5 million as of July 17. TIMB said diversification could provide income outside the tobacco production cycle, improve household food security, and strengthen farm resilience under its Tobacco Value Chain Transformation Plan 2.

  • Kutsaga Promotes Drought-Ready Tobacco Ahead of El Niño 

    Kutsaga Promotes Drought-Ready Tobacco Ahead of El Niño 

    Kutsaga Research is promoting drought-tolerant and fast-maturing tobacco varieties as Zimbabwe prepares for an expected El Niño-induced drought in the 2026/27 season. The regional outlook from SARCOF-33 forecasts below-normal rainfall and above-normal temperatures across much of Southern Africa from October 2026 to March 2027. 

    Kutsaga’s portfolio includes KRK71 and KRK75, which have deep-rooting characteristics that help plants access moisture, and T78–T81, which mature rapidly to escape late-season moisture stress. The institution is also promoting float seedbed technology and T77, a Trichoderma harzianum-based biological solution supporting root health. 

    Kutsaga is testing LPG- and biogas-fueled curing systems to reduce reliance on conventional energy sources. The broader strategy combines climate-resilient varieties, improved seedlings, water management and alternative energy to help tobacco farmers shift from reacting to drought to planning for climate risks. 

  • Africa’s Tobacco Production Rises Despite Global Decline 

    Africa’s Tobacco Production Rises Despite Global Decline 

    Africa’s tobacco-leaf production increased nearly 9% between 2012 and 2024, even as global production fell by almost 19%, according to a new WHO analysis. Africa accounted for around 11% of global output in 2024, with Zimbabwe, Malawi, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Uganda producing most of the continent’s tobacco. East Africa alone accounts for nearly 90% of African tobacco-leaf production. 

    At the same time, Africa’s cigarette import bill more than doubled, from $833 million to $1.8 billion, highlighting a growing imbalance between raw-leaf exports and manufactured cigarette imports. WHO is calling for greater investment in crop diversification and economically viable alternatives for tobacco farmers, alongside stronger tobacco-control measures. 

  • Zimbabwe Posts Record Tobacco Production, Prices Fall

    Zimbabwe Posts Record Tobacco Production, Prices Fall

    Zimbabwe ended its 2026 tobacco marketing season with a record harvest of more than 357 million kg, surpassing the previous season’s record of 354.8 million kg, according to the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB). The average tobacco price, however, fell to $2.49 per kg from about $3.30 a year earlier due to increased global supply, larger carry-over stocks, and weaker international demand.

    The decline in prices renewed calls from the TIMB and growers to diversify into horticulture and other cash crops to reduce exposure to market volatility and climate risks. China remained Zimbabwe’s largest tobacco export market, accounting for 34% of export volumes since the marketing season opened in March.

  • Zimbabwe Tobacco Farmers Deliver More, But See 24% Revenue Drop

    Zimbabwe Tobacco Farmers Deliver More, But See 24% Revenue Drop

    Zimbabwe’s 2026 tobacco marketing season closed with farmers delivering 353.8 million kg of tobacco, a 2% increase from the previous season, driven primarily by contract sales, according to the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB). Despite higher production, industry revenues fell 24% year over year to $882.5 million as the average selling price declined from $3.33/kg to $2.49/kg.

    The season also saw a 46% increase in rejected bales, highlighting quality challenges that TIMB said will be a key focus ahead of the next production cycle as the industry works to improve farmer returns and support Zimbabwe’s long-term goal of expanding the tobacco sector into a $7 billion industry.

  • Philippines Tightening Controls on Growers After 27% Surplus

    Philippines Tightening Controls on Growers After 27% Surplus

    The Philippine National Tobacco Administration (NTA) is tightening production controls for the 2026-2027 planting season following a tobacco leaf surplus in the previous crop year. Citing a volatile global buyers’ market, NTA Administrator Belinda Sanchez said the agency will emphasize contract growing, premium leaf quality, and production aligned with market demand to protect growers from oversupply and rejected crops.

    The NTA is encouraging the country’s approximately 35,000 uncontracted tobacco farmers to join its Tobacco Contract Growing System, after reporting that flue-cured Virginia tobacco production exceeded purchase commitments by about 27% (5 million kg) last season. The agency is also promoting soil-area matching requirements to improve leaf quality and better meet buyer specifications.

  • Pakistan Warns Companies Against Delaying Tobacco Purchase

    Pakistan Warns Companies Against Delaying Tobacco Purchase

    The Pakistan Tobacco Board (PTB) warned tobacco companies and dealers to immediately begin purchasing flue-cured Virginia (FCV) tobacco or face enforcement action under the PTB Ordinance of 1968. In a notice to the industry, the board said companies had failed to open buying centers within the July 8-11 procurement window established under the Marketing Control Rules, 2016, putting them in violation of the regulations.

    PTB directed companies to begin purchases and submit compliance reports within three days. The warning follows last year’s delayed buying season, when some manufacturers and dealers waited until tobacco was declared surplus before purchasing at lower prices, a practice growers say resulted in significant financial losses.

  • Alliance One’s New Seeds Transforming Tanzanian Yields

    Alliance One’s New Seeds Transforming Tanzanian Yields

    Tobacco farmers in Tanzania’s Tabora Region are reporting higher yields and improved incomes following the introduction of proprietary Alliance One Varieties (AOV) tobacco seeds by Alliance One Tobacco Tanzania Limited. Farmers said the new varieties, including AOV 212, AOV 405, and AOV 815, produce higher-quality leaf, offer greater resistance to disease and drought, and significantly outperform traditional seed varieties. According to growers, yields have increased from about 1,350 kg per hectare with conventional seeds to 3,000–3,500 kg per hectare with the new varieties.

    Alliance One said the seeds were developed through extensive research, with field trials conducted in collaboration with the Tanzania Tobacco Research Institute (TORITA), producing yields of more than 3,200 kg per hectare. Industry stakeholders said the improved seed varieties could strengthen Tanzania’s tobacco sector by boosting farm productivity, improving export-quality leaf, increasing grower incomes, and supporting higher agricultural export revenues. 

  • Pakistani Growers Protest ‘Violation’ of Tobacco Purchase Agreement

    Pakistani Growers Protest ‘Violation’ of Tobacco Purchase Agreement

    Tobacco growers in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province accused the local management of a multinational tobacco company of failing to honor procurement agreements by refusing to purchase leaf that farmers say meets agreed quality standards. Protesting outside the Pakistan Tobacco Company’s depot in Charsadda, growers claimed the alleged refusal has left hundreds of farming families facing financial hardship during the marketing season and warned that continued purchasing delays could discourage future tobacco cultivation.

    Farmer representatives are calling on provincial and federal authorities to intervene, investigate the dispute, and ensure procurement contracts are honored, while threatening to escalate demonstrations if the company does not resume purchases.