Staff Reporter
Zimbabwean tobacco farmers have been issued with a warning against the use of fake and uncertified tobacco seeds, as authorities fear the practice could derail the country's ambitious plan to grow its tobacco sector into a US$5 billion industry.
In a statement yesterday, Kutsaga Research, the country’s leading tobacco research institute, said it has received numerous reports of illegal imports and sales of uncertified flue-cured tobacco seed varieties across several farming regions.
These seeds, often misrepresented as genuine Kutsagahybrids, are not approved for commercial use and have been linked to major crop failures.
“This includes some unprescribed old fertile lines and varieties and also landraces purportedly sold as Kutsaga hybrids. Unfortunately, growers who have cultivated these varieties have suffered huge economic losses due to their inherently low or poor agronomic attributes, which result in crops and leaves that fall short of market standards for flue-cured tobacco,” reads the statement.
Under Zimbabwean law, only seed varieties approved by the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB), on the recommendation of the Tobacco Research Board (TRB), are allowed for commercial production.
However, a growing number of farmers, particularly in Gutu, Gokwe South, and Karoi, have fallen victim to fraudulent suppliers, unknowingly planting uncertified seed types that offer poor yields and low market value.
One farmer from Gutu reportedly bought what he believed to be flue-cured tobacco seed, only to later discover it was a cigar wrapper type—completely unsuitable for the intended market.
Such mistakes are becoming more common and are putting livelihoods at risk.
Kutsaga highlighted that certified tobacco seeds undergo rigorous testing, including agronomic, chemical, and smoke quality evaluations, to ensure they meet both local and export standards.
The institution said relying on untested and unapproved seed undermines these efforts.
“Growers and merchants will inadvertently suffer financial losses through yield penalties, increased cost in pests and disease control and low-value leaf crops (or filler styles),” Kutsaga warned.
Beyond the farm gate, the economic consequences are far-reaching.
“The net effect is that, at the household level, this compromises family income and food security, and at the national level, it results in low foreign currency receipts, and this goes against the Tobacco Value Chain Transformation Plan and its tenets towards a US$5 billion revenue from the crop,” the institution added.
Farmers are being urged to verify the source of their seeds and only purchase from certified suppliers to protect their crops, income, and the future of Zimbabwe’s tobacco industry.
