Zimbabwe produced over 465 000 tonnes of wheat in the 2023 winter wheat season, thereby surpassing the previous record of 375 000 tonnes attained in 2022.
The country requires about 360 000 tonnes of wheat for national consumption annually and this month this year’s winter wheat crop is 100 000 tonnes more than national demand.
Speaking to The Sunday Mail, the chief director responsible for agricultural engineering, mechanisation, post-harvest agro-processing and soil conservation in the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development, Engineer Edwin Zimunga, said:
We can safely say wheat harvesting is complete. From the mechanisation view, we are now shifting focus to land preparation for the summer cropping season.
Government’s investment in wheat production continues to pay off handsomely, as farmers have successfully harvested over 465 000 tonnes, representing a new record in wheat production.
We have reason to celebrate as our farmers really answered the call from the Government to fight for food security. It is clear that the initiatives are yielding results.
The high wheat output is expected to lead to a decline in prices for basics like bread, pasta and pastries as flour is a major ingredient.
Zimbabwe produces what is called soft wheat which is typically milled into flour and used to make a wide range of foods, including bread, muffins, noodles, pasta, biscuits, cakes, cookies, pastries and cereal bars.
Grain Millers Association of Zimbabwe (GMAZ) chairperson Tafadzwa Musarara told The Sunday Mail that the country could export some of the soft wheat in return for only 30 percent hard wheat to meet the market standards of bread.
Zimbabwe has surpassed its winter wheat output target for the second successive season and this has been attributed to favourable pre-planting producer prices, uninterrupted electricity and water supply for irrigation.
Prior to the winter season, Government set a pre-planting producer price of US$520 per tonne of wheat.
Part of the money is paid in foreign currency, while the Zimbabwe dollar component is paid at the prevailing interbank rate.
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