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Elton Manguwo
TOBACCO farmers’ earnings continue to grow with Day 42 of the 2023 marketing season showing that they have broken the half a billion dollars’ threshold to generate US$529 million from the sale of 176 million kilogrammes of the golden leaf.
The farmers’ current earnings and tobacco volumes delivered have eclipsed the figures recorded during the same period last year when farmers sold 122 million kilogrammes of tobacco worth US$366 million.
The increase marks a 44 percent change with the average price for this year sitting at US$3 per kilogramme versus US$2, 99 for last season, which is 0, 51 percentage change.
Contract floors so far lead the race with 162 million kilogrammes of the flue-cured tobacco worth US$488 million sold compared to 14 million kilogrammes of tobacco worth US$41 million traded at the auction floors.
The highest price recorded so far at both floors is US$6, 20 per kilogramme that was scored at the contract floors while the lowest price remains stagnant at US$0, 10 per kilogramme at both floors as well. Last season’s highest price was US$6, 80 per kilogramme and was recorded at the contract floors.
This season, farmers will retain 85 percent of their earnings in hard currency up from last year’s 75 percent. The rest of the earnings will be in local currency pegged at the prevailing interbank exchange rate.
The decision to award farmers 85 percent of their foreign currency earnings was made effective starting February 6, this year.
Tobacco deliveries are estimated to rise to 230 million kilogrammes this year, up from last season’s 212 million kilogrammes.
The projection comes following farmers have planted 112 293 hectares of tobacco down from last season’s 116 454 hectares while the area under the irrigated crop increased by 2 percent from 17 867ha last year to 18 237 hectares this year whilst production on dry land also rose 4 percent from 94 426 hectres to 98 273 hectares this time season.
Online Reporter