Agriculture.

Snapshot

• ~12–17% of GDP, ~25% of formal employment, ~60–70% of livelihoods.
• Highly rain-dependent; only ~190,000 ha under irrigation out of ~10 m ha arable.
• Post-2000 land reform shifted from 4,500 commercial farms to ~300,000 A1/A2 farmers.
• 99-year leases now bankable in principle since 2020.

Sub-sectors

Tobacco (the cash crop)

• Production: ~296 m kg in 2024 (TIMB), targeting 300 m kg under the Tobacco Value Chain Transformation Plan.
• ~95% exported; China, EU, UAE top destinations.
• ~70% grown by small-holder contract farmers.
• Profitability: gross margins of US$1,500–3,000/ha; net ~US$600–1,500/ha after inputs.
• Players: Boka Tobacco Floors, Tobacco Sales Floor, Premier Tobacco; Pyramid Tobacco Processors; merchants: BAT, Mashonaland Tobacco, Tian Ze (CNTC), Northern Tobacco.

Maize (the food crop)

• 2024 drought harvest ~744k tonnes vs ~2.2 m tonnes national need → US$300m+ import bill.
• Government Pfumvudza/Intwasa conservation-agriculture programme supports ~3 m households.
• Profitability: thin (US$50–200/ha at GMB floor price) without yield > 4 t/ha.

Horticulture

• Blueberries: explosive growth — 2024 exports ~7,000 t worth ~US$70 m, up from ~500 t in 2018. Players: Nhimbe Fresh, Selby Enterprises, Silverland Farms.
• Citrus, avocados, macadamia growing; peas, mange-tout to UK and Netherlands.
• Profitability: blueberry gross margin US$15k–30k/ha; macadamia mature orchard US$5k+/ha.
• Target: ZimTrade "Horticulture Recovery & Growth Plan" — US$1 bn exports by 2030.

Cotton

• Production: ~30k–50k tonnes/yr (well below 350k peak of 2010s).
• COTTCO is the dominant ginner; private players: Alliance Ginneries, Southern Cotton.
• Margins squeezed by global prices and side-marketing.

Sugar

• Lowveld estates (Triangle, Hippo Valley) — Tongaat Hulett group + Tongaat-administered business rescue (RSA parent) — produce ~400k tonnes refined sugar/yr.
• Mostly domestic + COMESA + EU EBA quota exports.

Livestock

• Beef: ~5.4 m cattle herd; foot-and-mouth disease constrains EU access; CSC (Cold Storage Company) being privatised under Boustead Beef.
• Dairy: ~80 m litres/yr vs ~130 m litres demand → milk powder imports.
• Poultry: Irvine's, Innscor's Profeeds-Colcom-Irvine's vertical dominates.
• Opportunity: Dairy import-substitution; small-ruminant export to Middle East halal.

Inputs & mechanisation

• Seed: Seed Co (regional leader, ZSE-listed), Pannar, Pioneer (Corteva).
• Fertiliser: Sable Chemicals, Zimphos (both part of Chemplex), ZFC, Windmill — capacity underutilised because of gas/coal feedstock issues.
• Mechanisation: "Belarus tractor" facility deal; AFC Land Bank financing under reform.

Challenges

• Weather: El Niño/La Niña cycle drives boom-bust harvests.
• Tenure: 99-year leases now bankable but bank uptake remains slow.
• Finance: 35%+ interest rates kill working capital math; AFC Land Bank reach is limited.
• Logistics: ~30–40% post-harvest losses for horticulture without cold chain.
• Power: pivots and pack-houses run on diesel during load-shedding.
• Input cost: fertiliser landed cost ~US$700–900/t (volatile).

Advantages

• Soils and climate suit a diversified mix — counter-season for European markets.
• AfCFTA + EU EBA + SADC EPA all provide market access.
• Skilled agronomic talent base still present; commercial farming culture not extinct.
• Diaspora remittances finance peri-urban small-holder upgrades.

Example companies

• Seed Co Group: ZSE-listed, regional seed leader, expanding into West Africa.
• Nhimbe Fresh: premium horticulture exporter — peas, berries.
• Tongaat Hulett Zimbabwe: sugar, ethanol, electricity co-gen at Triangle.
• Innscor Africa / Irvine's / Colcom / Profeeds: vertically integrated agribusiness.
• AFGRI Zimbabwe: inputs and grain handling.