Zimbabwe has achieved a record wheat harvest as farmers had delivered 326 687 tonnes to the Grain Marketing Board (GMB) as of Friday morning.
Before this year’s output, the highest-ever wheat output since commercial production began in the 1960s was 325 000 tonnes realised in 1990.
Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Deputy Minister Vangelis Haritatos told The Sunday Mail that the set target of 380 000 tonnes for the 2022 winter wheat season is still attainable. He said:
After some assessments, we project that we should get at least 380 000 tonnes of the cereal, which is 20 000 tonnes more than the national requirement.
The preparations had been so good and it seems we have managed to achieve our goal. What is left are the final actual statistics, but it all points to a remarkable season.
The ministry’s Permanent Secretary, John Basera, said veld fires and early rains have not affected the set targets.
Last week, Cabinet indicated that 3 980 hectares had been damaged by rains, with the largest hectarage of 3 225 being in Mashonaland West province.
Meanwhile, Agricultural Advisory and Rural Development Services chief director Obert Jiri said that farmers are facing several challenges. He said:
As of November 25, wheat delivered to GMB depots stood at 326 687 tonnes, almost 89 percent (of the target).
Harvesting is still going on but our farmers are facing challenges to deliver the grain to GMB due to transport logistics, challenges of high moisture content due to the rains and late payments of initial deliveries.