US$4m tobacco crop lost in 10 mins

Tobacco farmers in Headlands were left reeling last week after a violent hailstorm destroyed irrigated tobacco crops valued at more than US$4 million, just days before harvest.

What began as welcome rainfall quickly turned catastrophic, shredding 387 hectares of flourishing tobacco - predominantly on large-scale commercial farms - leaving leaves pockmarked, torn, and beyond recovery.

While most large-scale producers had insured their crops, small-scale farmers in Bingaguru, whose rain-fed tobacco was also damaged, were not as fortunate.

Among the hardest hit were some of Zimbabwe's top growers, including Denfrod Mutwiwa of Mutwiwa Farm, Felix Kamusasa of Dzikiti Farm, and Monica Chinamasa of Tsukumai Farm.

Mr. Mutwiwa, last season's crowned best tobacco grower by the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB), described the destruction as catastrophic.

"At one of my leased farms, all 120 hectares of prime tobacco were shredded in less than 10 minutes, inflicting losses of about US$1 million," he said. "My tobacco was insured. You cannot grow tobacco at large scale without insurance because it is suicidal. Imagine 120 hectares of ripening tobacco gone in just 10 minutes – how do you recover from that if you are not insured?"

Mr. Kamusasa reported losses of 140 hectares valued at approximately US$1.9 million. "All in all, I lost about 140 hectares of ripening tobacco, which was due for harvesting on December 5. The whole crop was shredded and cannot recover. Being a contracted crop, it means I had borrowed, and that was a huge blow," he said.

ZNFU president and grower Mrs. Monica Chinamasa had 40 hectares affected, primarily losing the top seven leaves of her crop. "We lost about half of the leaves that were exposed to the hailstorm. We grow tobacco under contract, and it is mandatory that we insure our crop. Farmers should always insure their crops because you never know what will happen," she said.

Beyond hailstorms, tobacco farmers face multiple risks, including fires during curing, theft, and robbery during transport to auction floors. In response, the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) has mandated that tobacco bales be transported only by registered transporters with goods-in-transit insurance.

The hailstorm has sent shockwaves through the farming community, underscoring the vulnerability of agriculture to extreme weather events and highlighting the critical role of crop insurance in protecting livelihoods.