Zimbabwe’s Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) said it is working to stabilize the market as the 2026 season has gotten off to a rocky start, with early prices plummeting due to global oversupply and slow buyer participation. After two weeks, the average price had dropped 24% from last season to $2.66 per kg, with some bales selling for as little as 10 cents per kg.
TIMB chief executive Emmanuel Matsvaire said several major merchants, who fund 85% of the crop, had not finalized their credit facilities by the time the market opened, creating a void of competition that allowed prices to bottom out. With those companies back in the fold, Matsvaire said the increased participation is helping prices trend upward. The board is also emphasizing better market intelligence to align Zimbabwe’s production with global demand, aiming to restore confidence among the country’s 100,000-plus growers
Coming out of a record-shattering 2025 season where it produced 355 million kg of tobacco, Zimbabwe encouraged farmers to push for a national output of 400 million kg this year. However, China, the largest consumer of Zimbabwean leaf, reportedly lowered its orders by more than 10 million kg, sending TIMB to aggressively seek new export markets in the Middle East, Africa, and EU.



