Zim Targets 80m KG of Tobacco This Year

Source from:  Sunday News (zw) 01/14/2010

THE country is projected to harvest more than 80 million kilogrammes of tobacco this season compared to the 56 million kilogrammes of the crop that went through the auction floors last season, an official has said. In an interview, the president of the Zimbabwe Commercial Farmers Union (ZCFU), Mr Wilson Nyabonda, said the 80 million kilogramme target was possible this year because of an increase in the number of farmers who are growing the crop. He said the interest was spurred by the introduction of foreign currency. "This year there has been an increase in farmers registering to put their land under tobacco farming. As a result 65 000 hectares are under tobacco farming which is a significant increase compared to 50 000 hectares that were put under tobacco last season. "We have carried out the crop assessment with various stakeholders and noted that 80 million kilogrammes could be harvested this year. I say so because in the four provinces where tobacco is largely grown, the crop is looking good and farmers are doing their best to make sure that we reach our target," said Mr Nyabonda. In the previous agricultural season, 10 000 farmers registered to plant the golden leaf. Zimbabwe realised more than US$168 million from last year's crop with prices averaging US$3,02 per kilogramme between April and August. Tobacco is extensively grown in provinces such as Mashonaland East, West, Central and Manicaland. Mr Nyabonda said 2010 might be the best season for tobacco because of its favourable moisture conditions. "Apart from the dedication by our farmers the weather conditions have been good to us and propelled the farmers to increase their efforts. I would also like to note the support that we got from the Government through its inputs support schemes. Last year, before the season started, we received seeds and fertilizers although they were not adequate but the contribution made a difference and this is seen in the condition of crops," he said. Commenting on the tobacco crop situation countrywide, the ZCFU president said both rain-fed and irrigated tobacco was growing well. However, he said there were challenges that farmers were facing that might affect the projected yield. "We are presently facing problems of continued power cuts and this negatively affects our operations. The projected target may not be met because of a number of challenges tobacco farmers are facing right now. The availability of inputs such as ammonium nitrate and compound C fertilizer in the country is limited," he said. Mr Nyabonda said farmers were also facing problems of labour citing that tobacco was an intensive labour crop. Enditem