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Edgar Vhera-Agriculture Specialist Writer

THE 2024 cigar tobacco marketing recently roared into life in Manicaland with a high price of US$7,05 per kilogramme being recorded on the first sale, as the crop entered its 10^th year of production.

Statistics released by the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) showed that growers had sold 5 200 kilogrammes of cigar tobacco worth US$16 432 at an average price of US$3, 16 per kilogramme.

TIMB public affairs officer, Mrs Chelesani Tsarwe said the sales took place at Mapeto Farm in Burma Valley in Manicaland province.

“Growers comprised 11 small-scale growers all doing half a hectare each and one commercial farmer doing four hectares. The highest price fetched was US$7, 05 per kilogramme,” she said.

Bales of Cigar sold

Mapeto Farm owner Mr James Lindsay Guild said: “The first of the anticipated three sales saw 5 022 kilogrammes of the crop undergoing sale at an average price of US$3, 16 per kilogramme. The crop was grown under contract with 14 small-scale farmers and one commercial grower.”

Mr Guild said the crop was fermented at his farm for at least a year.

“The premium tobacco from the crop is destined for the American cigar market. The average yield is around 1 500 kilogrammes per hectare,” he said.

The 14 small-scale farmers produce the crop under dryland while commercial production is under irrigation.

He said the crop size and hectarage was static at the moment unless new markets were established.

The plan for the 2024/25 season was to continue with the current hectarage, he added.

He said the planted varieties included cigar wrapper tobacco, cubro 396 and a bit of jutti.

Meanwhile, statistics from ZimStats show that cigar product exports are declining from US$6 879 in 2021 to US$5 750 in 2022 and further down to US$4 646 last year.

Among the products under cigar product classification are cigars, cheroots, cigarillos containing tobacco and cigarettes of tobacco substitutes.

The Government crafted the Tobacco Value Chain Transformation Plan (TVCTP) in 2021 to achieve a US$5 billion tobacco industry by 2025 through diversification from flue-cured tobacco.

Among other products that farmers are embarking on production are shisha, cigar with others going into horticulture production for diversified income stream.

Stakeholders attending the recent tobacco conference hosted by The Business Weekly in Harare called on local farmers to produce burley and oriental tobacco, as the country was importing these at high costs in their cigarette making processes.

Cultivating these crops will present diversified earnings to farmers.