2020's Challenges for Global Tobacco Farmers

摘要

The Covid-19 pandemic has had a negative impact on most economic sectors and the tobacco sector is no exception. Although it is still too early to assess the long-term effects of the novel coronavirus on the industry, some of its short-term effects can already be seen.One of the main consequences of the lock-down has been the postponement of the marketing season in several countries. In certain cases, restrictions have continued even after the lifting of the lockdown. In the case of Malawi, tobacco growers were forbidden to physically attend auctions and were represented by farmers' associations. This restriction made growers uncomfortable, especially the smaller growers, and together with the prices offered motivated protests as growers felt they were badly represented when they saw the outcome prices. As a consequence, some small growers even considered abandoning the tobacco-growing business. However, despite this instability, the average price has increased in the 2020 marketing season, from US$1.44 per kg in 2019 to US$1.51 per kg, as of June 26. To date, the crop volume is 64,402 tons, a reduction of 10% when compared with the previous year.This reduction is not only due to the pandemic but also to the heavy rains that continued until March, which in addition caused a loss of quality.