High hopes as Zimbabwe’s market opens

Zimbabwe’s 2014 flue-cured tobacco marketing season was due to open today, with expectations high for both volume sales and earnings, according to a story in New Zimbabwe.

The 91,000 growers—mostly small-scale farmers—who registered to grow the 2013–2014 crop are thought to have produced about 175 million–185 million kg, up from the 167 million kg produced in 2012–2013 by 65,500 registered growers.

Earnings this season are expected to be higher than the $616 million of last season.