This year’s tobacco selling season closed with total sales amounting to $173.5 million (about K130 billion) which is 23% lower than the sales registered during last year’s market season.

According to figures by Auction Holdings Limited (AHL), the market this year sold 112.89 million kgs of tobacco as opposed to 165.67 million kgs sold last year, which was also what the company predicted last month. While the covid-19 pandemic stands as a contributing factor to the lowered sales, there was also a high rejection rate reaching up to 50% this year.

On the other hand, this year’s market saw better prices compared to last year’s. Tobacco Commission Chief Executive Officer, Kaisi Sadala, also attributed the drop to the weather impact, especially excessive rains received immediately after the second round of crop estimates.