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Mashonaland West Bureau
Unscrupulous and unlicensed tobacco merchants have descended on Hurungwe District where they are taking advantage of rural farmers who are desperate for instant cash and buying the crop at very low prices.

There are also claims that the dealers are also linked to buyers at established auction floors countrywide.

The practice is also widespread in A1 farms and communal areas where the illegal buyers are offering prices of about $1 per kilogram while shop owners at some business centres are also exchanging their goods with tobacco at the same rate.

Farmers interviewed around the district confirmed having been approached by the prospective buyers.

Mr Edmond Mupanedengu, a tobacco farmer from Chinyembere village under Chief Dendera in Magunje, alleged that he knew some of the buyers from the auction floors.

“There are two people I have known as buyers at the auction floors over the years. They are among those moving around buying tobacco from the farmers.

“I suspect these people could be tinkering with prices at the auction floors so that farmers get frustrated and opt to sell their tobacco at home. They don’t mind buying from contract farmers.

“This practice is in fact likely to cause an upsurge in tobacco thefts among villagers as selling tobacco no longer requires any growers’ number. Tobacco is now being treated as an open cheque here,” he said.

However, Mr More Chingwaru of Seremwe Village in Ward 2, said the illegal buyers were a blessing to the area since they were making life easy for the farmers.

“They have brought a lot of convenience to the farmers. Imagine spending a week at the floors, staying and sleeping in squalid conditions, only to sell my tobacco at 20 cents per kg.

“Most of the farmers end up borrowing money for bus fare for their return journeys after failing to break even at the auction floors. Transporters are charging $60 to ferry a bale of tobacco to the floors. This does not make economic sense when the prices are around 20 to 30 cents per kg.”

He further argued that some farmers are opting to sell to the dealers who are offering the bond notes instead of electronic transfer.

Meanwhile, bottle stores and shops at Chedope Business Centre under Chief Chanetsa were trading liquor and groceries with tobacco at the rate of $1per kilogram of tobacco.

Farmers also indicated that they were more comfortable with the barter trade since they incurred less costs than travelling to the auction floors.

In an interview yesterday, Zimbabwe Farmers Union 2nd second vice president Mr Berean Mukwende said these deals deprived farmers genuine reward for their sweat.

“Tobacoo is a crop that must be sold solely through the auction floor system. The sale of the golden leaf under trees disadvantages farmers as they won’t be able to get real value for their money,” he said.

Mr Mukwende said the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board should ensure that the farmer does not lose out through these illegal deals.

“If tobacco is sold in this way, we will end up having a lot of challenges such as side marketing and distortions on estimates and projections of our yields. Where we would have projected 10 tonnes for a farmer we may end up getting four tonnes due to this practice,” he said.

Government, he added, should capacitate farmer organisations which have structures to deter such practices.

Mr Mukwende also bemoaned uncompetitive prices at the auction floors which promoted side-marketing.

He confirmed the possibility of a link between the unscrupulous buyers and auction floor people.