• Zimbabwe opens $100M tobacco plant to boost local processing capacity
  
  
• Facility can produce 600M cigarettes monthly, aims to reduce raw exports
  
  
• Sector targets $7B revenue by 2030 amid rising tobacco production

Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa inaugurated a tobacco processing plant in Harare on November 19. The $100 million facility was developed by agribusiness firm Cut Rag Processors (CRP).

According to The Zimbabwe Mail, the plant can process 3,000 tons of tobacco monthly into cut rag. It can also produce up to 60,000 master cases of cigarettes monthly, equivalent to 600 million individual cigarettes, with one master case containing 10,000 cigarettes.

This investment aims to strengthen Zimbabwe's underdeveloped processing capacity. The country has 10 cigarette manufacturers with combined annual production capacity of 4.4 billion cigarettes, according to April statements from Emmanuel Matsvaire, acting general manager of the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB).

Matsvaire said these operators currently process only 10-15% of local tobacco into cut rag and cigarettes. The TIMB plans to increase the local processing rate to 30% through private investment to capture more value in the export-oriented sector.

This expansion is strategic for the government's goal of generating $7 billion in total sector revenues by 2030 under the second phase of its Food Systems, Agriculture and Rural Transformation Strategy (AFSRTS 2), which prioritizes value-added processing.

By comparison, Zimbabwe earned $1.4 billion from tobacco exports in 2024, with $1.32 billion (94%) coming from unprocessed raw leaf, according to Trade Map data.

Zimbabwe's tobacco production continues growing rapidly. The 2025 harvest increased 53% to 354,000 tons, setting a new sector record. TIMB data shows production has grown at an average annual rate of 13.98% since 2020, representing 92% growth over five years from the 184,000-ton-harvest in 2020.

The TIMB aims to increase annual production to nearly 500,000 tons by 2030. With limited processing capacity, the sector misses significant value-added opportunities from its expanding harvest. Zimbabwe's tobacco is primarily grown in the provinces of Mashonaland West, Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East, and Manicaland.

Stéphanas Assocle