A TOP tobacco seed producer, Zimbabwe Tobacco Seed Association (ZTSA), has quit production and is closing shop after it failed to secure parent seed, amid fears this will affect the billion-dollar golden leaf sector.
ZTSA executive committee chairperson Mildred Kamusasa confirmed the developments adding that hundreds will lose jobs.
“We have not had the chance to get parent seed for the past six years and it pushed us out of business,” she said in a telephone interview.
“We had over 400 workers as part of the seed production company. Sadly, the company is not relocating but we are shutting down operations and liquidating.
“There is no hope that we can come back into play any time soon.”
Kutsaga public relations and communications officer Tatenda Mugabe said the closure of ZTSA was unfortunate, but allayed fears of seed shortages.
“While the closure of ZTSA is disheartening, rest assured that the supply of tobacco seed will continue without any compromise,” Mugabe said in written responses to questions from NewsDay.
Zimbabwe remains one of the world’s largest producers of tobacco posting nearly US$1 billion in foreign currency earnings annually.
- Tobacco seed producer shuts down
