Tag: Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board

TIMB Joins GlobalG.A.P.

Photo: Taco Tuinstra
Zimbabwe’s Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) has joined GLOBALG.A.P. to help tobacco farmers diversify their operations, reports The Sunday Mail. As part of the government’s Tobacco Value Chain Transformation Plan, the agency aims to ensure that 30 percent of tobacco farmers’ income comes from alternative crops by 2025.
GLOBALG.A.P. is an international membership network designed to promote sustainable and safe agricultural practices across the food supply chain.
Members include producers, retailers, food service companies and other stakeholders who align with the organization’s vision of responsible farming. The community offers opportunities for members to collaborate on setting and refining standards for food safety, sustainability and animal welfare.
Through the GLOBALG.A.P. Academy, the TIMB has trained certified trainers to build farmers’ capacity in meeting international market standards.
Additionally, the TIMB now offers GLOBALG.A.P consultancy services to exporting farmers. The agency is also working to develop markets for alternative crops such as sweet potatoes and butternut.
October 28, 2024
Contractors Required to Supply Tree Seedlings

Photo: Joao Bispo
Starting this season, tobacco contractors operating in Zimbabwe will be required to supply their growers with tree seedlings to establish woodlots, reports The Herald. The goal is to provide tobacco farmers with a sustainable source of curing fuel.
The shift from commercial tobacco farming to small-scale production in Zimbabwe has put considerable pressure on the country’s forest cover, given that smallholders tend to use wood rather than coal in their operations.
As Zimbabwe aims to increase tobacco cultivation under the government’s Tobacco Value Chain Transformation Plan, it is at pains to minimize the environmental impact of growth.
The requirement to provide seedlings is part of a number of Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) initiatives to promote sustainability.
TIMB acting CEO Emmanuel Matsvaire said his organization was promoting best agricultural practices, environmental management and social and human rights to improve socioeconomic conditions for tobacco growers and their communities.
October 27, 2024
Zimbabwe: Preparation for Growing Season on Track

Photo: Taco Tuinstra
The Zimbabwean tobacco industry is increasingly confident it will achieve 300 million kg in the 2024–2025 season, reports The Herald.
In a statement on Oct. 10, Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board Public Affairs Officer Chelesani Tsarwe said preparations for the upcoming growing season were progressing well, with most farmers expressing optimism about the cropping period.
With consistent rainfall and moderate temperatures expected, farmers are better positioned to maximize their outputs than they were in the most recent growing season.
“We are optimistic about achieving the set target, thanks to the favorable weather forecast,” said Tsarwe.
Despite the drought caused by El Nino, tobacco fared relatively well last year. The yield decreased by 20 percent from the previous season, reaching about 231 million kg in 2023.
As of Oct. 4, 2024, Zimbabwe had exported 159.43 million kg of tobacco valued at $833.99 million compared to 143.23 million kg during the same period last year.
“The average export price this year stands at $5.23, marking an increase from $4.99 recorded during the same period last year,” said Tsarwe.
Last year, the country earned $1.3 billion from tobacco exports, up 30 percent over 2022.
Eager to capture more value from the tobacco business, the government wants Zimbabwe to boost leaf output and move into value-added activities such as cigarette manufacturing.
October 13, 2024
TIMB Deploys Biometrics to Curb Side Marketing

Photo: Taco Tuinstra
Zimbabwe’s Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) is pioneering a new biometric management system to curb side marketing, a practice in which farmers sell their crops to noncontracting merchants and deprive the investor of his tobacco.
The regulatory body is collecting fingerprints from each tobacco farmer and linking them to their unique grower number. The biometric data is complemented by GPS coordinates of the growers’ farms. When farmers collect inputs, contractors can verify a growers’ authenticity using a scanner.
The system makes it impossible for farmers to contract with multiple tobacco merchants. It also captures the indebtedness of farmers, minimizing the potential for contractors to manipulate the growers’ financial obligations.
“The system will help eliminate corrupt elements by verifying their identities and improving the stop order system to prevent the misuse of growers’ numbers,” TIMB acting CEO Emmanuel Matsvaire told The Sunday Mail.
The old system, which relied solely on registration, allowed nonfarmers to participate in the market, fueling side marketing and leading to high rates of default.
Side marketing remains a significant problem in the Zimbabwean tobacco industry, responsible for millions of dollars in lost revenue.
In 2023, TIMB blocked nearly 550 grower numbers on suspicion of their use in side marketing. In 2021, five exporters alone lost $57 million due to the practice.
Meanwhile, preparations for the upcoming cropping season are progressing as the country seeks to achieve a tobacco yield of 300 million kg, according to Matsvaire.
Despite the El Nino drought that destroyed various crops last year, tobacco performed relatively well, declining by 20 percent to approximately 231 million kg from a record 297 million kg during the previous season.
This season’s target aligns with the government’s Tobacco Value Chain Transformation Plan, which also aims to enhance beneficiation and raise local funding.
October 7, 2024
Zimbabwe Growers Start Planting Irrigated Tobacco

Photo: Taco Tuinstra
Tobacco farmers in Zimbabwe started planting irrigated tobacco this week, with many expressing optimism about the upcoming growing season, reports The Herald.
Zimbabwe law stipulates Sept. 1 as the earliest legislative date for transplanting tobacco from the seedbed to the field. The bulk of rain-fed tobacco crop will be planted from late October to early December.
Most irrigated tobacco is grown by contracted growers who get their inputs on time. About 95 percent of the country’s crop is grown by contracted farmers.
“We have high hopes this season following the weather forecast so farmers are in the fields,” said Tobacco Farmers Union Trust President Victor Mariranyika.
Zimbabwean growers earned $793.18 million from 231.47 million kg in tobacco sales during the most recent marketing season, compared with $896.38 million from 295.94 million kg the previous year.
However, most farmers made more money than in the prior season, leaving them in a good position for the upcoming growing season.
September 6, 2024
Tobacco Board Leaders Arrested for Fraud

Photo: Taco Tuinstra
The Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission has arrested two senior executives of the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) and charged them with fraud, reports The Sunday Mail.
TIMB chairperson Patrick Devenish and TIMB CEO Meanwell Gudu are accused of extending a loan facility of over US$494,000 to Ultime Accolade Private in May 2021 without the knowledge of the tobacco industry regulator’s board.
The pair appeared in court just a day after Gudu was acquitted of criminal abuse of office charges involving more than $2 million.
Gudu was previously charged alongside Stuart Shanyika, a former head of special services at the TIMB, and Andrew Evaristo Matibiri, a former TIMB CEO. The trio was arrested in September 2022.
The state alleged that the executives, acting in connivance, entered into private agreements with handpicked tobacco contractors.
They allegedly used funds from a TIMB loan obtained from Agribank through the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe to support these companies, contrary to provisions of the loan agreement.
August 26, 2024
Zimbabwe Pioneers Centralized Curing

Photo: Taco Tuinstra
Zimbabwe’s Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board and Boost Africa have jointly introduced a centralized curing business system for smallholder tobacco farmers, reports News Day.
According to Boost Africa representative Henry Dike, the system will not only reduce production cost and efficiency but also boost sustainability.
Smallholders in Zimbabwe have traditionally cured their tobacco individually. Most use wood as a fuel source, which has led to concerns about deforestation.
“By providing them with the necessary resources and training, we are not just improving their yield but also elevating their entire farming operation to a commercial level,” said Dike.
“It’s not just about financial gains; it’s about creating a sustainable, scalable farming practice that can be replicated across the country,” he added.
Tafadzwa Mukarakate, agronomist and head of the Zimbabwe Farmers’ Union, said the project was critical in ensuring that farmers have the means to reinvest in their operations.
“The success of this project is a clear indication that with the right support, smallholder farmers can achieve commercial success,” he said.
July 21, 2024
Zimbabwe: Farmers Urged to Clear Fields

Photo: Taco Tuinstra
Tobacco growers who failed to clear their fields of residue from the previous crop by the May 15 deadline will face stiff penalties, Zimbabwe’s Kutsaga Research warned.
To break the life cycles of tobacco pests and pathogens, along with incidental infestations such as mealybugs and false wireworms, Zimbabwean law requires growers to clear their fields of all stalks from the previous crop before they prepare their seedbeds for the next growing season, according to The Herald.
The Plant Pests and Diseases Act requires this to be done by May 15 of every year. This year, seedbed preparations may start no earlier than June 1 while planting should not commence before Sept. 1.
Officials from the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board, Agritex and Plant Quarantine Services will be carrying out routine inspections of growers’ fields to ensure compliance, Kutsaga Research said in a notice.
“It is every tobacco grower’s responsibility to be proactive and ensure good agricultural practices and efficient use of aphicides as we enter the news season in order to slow down proliferation of aphids so as to minimize all viral transmissions,” the organization wrote.
Violators risk fines equivalent to US$100 per hectare.
May 16, 2024
Officers Told to Stop Demanding Kickbacks

Photo: Taco Tuinstra
Zimbabwe’s Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) has told field officers to stop demanding kickbacks from tobacco growers and transporters, reports The Herald.
According to the newspaper, some field officers are forcing farmers to use only vehicles owned by certain individuals, with some demanding up to $3 per bale for this “service.”
The Tobacco Transporters Trust of Zimbabwe (TTTZ) is reportedly compiling a list of the culprits.
“Lat year, the officers were demanding $1 per bale,” TTTZ Chairperson Rutendo Sande was quoted as saying. “We lodged complaints but no action was taken.”
May 11, 2024
Leaf Earnings up in Zimbabwe

Photo: Taco Tuinstra
Zimbabwean tobacco growers had earned $143 million from the sale of 41 million kg of flue-cured tobacco by Day 17 of this year’s marketing season—nearly 50 percent more than they pocketed after the same number of selling days last year, reports The Herald.
Contract floors accounted for 94 percent of the tobacco volumes after taking delivery of 38,432,613 kg while their auction counterparts stood at 6 percent with 2,583,334 kg, according to the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB).
Farmers earned $9.25 million and $134 million under the auction and contract system respectively. The average auction price surged 16 percent from $3.09 per kilogram on Day 1 to $3.58 by Day 17 while contract floors, which opened one day after the auctions, rose 13 percent, from $3.09 by Day 2 to $3.49 by Day 17.
The number of bale rejections was 38 percent lower than during the comparable 2023 period, a development that the TIMB attributes to the training of farmers on grading, presentation and bale handling, among other skills.
Despite the increases, some farmers expressed dissatisfaction with the current average price, which they believe should be higher, as supply is curtailed due to the El Nino drought.
In Brazil, the industry has been paying record prices due to a lower-than-expected Virginia tobacco harvest. According to the growers’ association Afubra, the average per-kilo price in Brazil was up by nearly 20 percent over that paid during the 2022-2023 marketing season.
April 10, 2024