Zimbabwe Tobacco Auctions Wrap up Mon

Source from:  Sep 10, AFP via Yahoo! News HARARE (AFP) 09/11/2007

Zimbabwe's annual tobacco auctions wrapped up with almost 70 million kilogrammes of the leaf sold, after pricing disputes delayed the start of the selling season, officials said Monday. This is a far cry from the impoverished country's glory days, when tobacco production reached a record high of 236.13 million kilogrammes (236,130 metric tonnes) in 2000 to just 55.6 million kilogrammes last year. According to figures released by the Zimbabwe Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) the country had sold 68.8 million kilogrammes of the golden leaf worth more than 159.8 million US dollars by close of business Friday. However there are hopes that production will increase, with TIMB chief executive Andrew Matibiri estimating a yield of 120 million kilogrammes of tobacco in the southern African country's coming season. "We intend to have 60,000 hectares of land under tobacco to produce 120 million kilogrammes of tobacco next season," he told AFP. "This means that we will be having a 50 percent increase of tobacco on the ground. "Although we have the usual problems of lack of inputs such as fertiliser and power outages we are confident we will be able to reach next years target." Zimbabwe Tobacco Association chief executive Rodney Ambrose said the country might reach its target of 80 million kilogrammes in a mop sale, and other sales later in the month. "This is one of the best marketing seasons we have had in terms of marketing as we have had support from the government and the central bank." The government has doled out 4.3 trillion Zimbabwe dollars (143 million US) in support tobacco farmers up from 14.4 billion Zimbabwe dollars in the previous year, TIMB said. In April, the opening day of the selling season was marred by a dispute over a pricing stalemate between farmers and buyers as growers withheld their crop in protest over prices. Critics blame the slump in production on President Robert Mugabe's land reform programme launched in 2000 which saw the government seize at least 4,000 farms from their white farmers for redistribution to landless blacks. Some of the new farmers often lack the skills and means to farm. Enditem