A total of 15,67 kilogrammes of tobacco worth USD 47.4 million has been sold since the start of the marketing season in Zimbabwe on 30 March, reports The Herald.

Free-funded tobacco auction sales opened on 30 March, while contract floors started a day later with an opening price of USD 4.20 per bale and USD 6.50 per bale, respectively.
The latest statistics from the Tobacco Industry Marketing Board (TIMB) show that prices on the auction floors increased slightly compared to last year. At the contract floors, the highest tobacco price was USD 6.50 per kg, slightly above the 2020/21 price of USD 6.30 per kg. Free-funded auction floors ceiling price was USD 4.99/kg, a slight increase from the beginning of sales when it was USD 4.96/kg.
The average price for both auction floors was USD 2.77/kg, significantly higher than last year's average price of USD 2.51/kg, the report said.
According to TIMB statistics, the volume sold in the 10 days was down 32.21 per cent at 15,67 million kg compared to 17,09 million kg. In the 2021 marketing season, the country sold 211 kgs of which 133 million kgs was produced by small scale farmers.
However, under the Tobacco Value Chain Transformation Plan, the government has set a target of producing 300 million kg of tobacco by 2025 and the USD 60 million fund it has set up is one of the various initiatives to achieve the agenda.
Zimbabwe Commercial Farmers Union’s (ZCFU) President Shadreck Makombe said since the marketing season has just started, prices fluctuate depending on the quality of the crop. "But for a start, we can't say the prices are bad, but we also expect the prices to firm, given the situation that the supply is not as high as previous years, hence price will depend on demand, especially of good leaf," he said.