Zimbabwean blueberry farmers have enjoyed historic success in recent years and are projected to increase national production guidance all the way up to 30,000 tonnes by 2030. This ambitious goal is a marker of a major shift in the country’s agricultural paradigm. It represents a significant shift from the organization’s historic base in tobacco cultivation. Zimbabwe is emerging as one of the world’s key fruit players. This second phenomenon, the recent blueberry export boom, is undergirding this change.
Alistair Campbell, co-owner of a high-tech 50-hectare blueberry farm located about an hour from Harare, has been instrumental in this transformation. His farm is the largest employer in Stokes County, and his farm alone employs about 6,000 people, most of them women. Especially during peak harvesting seasons, this labor force is essential. As many as 300 women work and harvest blueberries, deftly using this precise tool to avoid damaging the fruit.
In the last ten years, Zimbabwe has had an extraordinary growth curve in blueberry production. The country that was once home to under 2% of global supply. Today it has grown into Africa’s biggest producer and exporter of the crop. This year is no exception, as Zimbabwe’s production is projected to increase by 50%, up to approximately 12,000 tonnes. Last year, the country brought in $30 million from blueberry exports.
Clarence Mwale, a horticulture specialist, started Kuminda as a way to help small- and medium-scale farmers. He imagines continued growth in the industry to support these farmers’ success. He’s currently looking for about 100 young farmers to make the transition to blueberries. This new bilateral initiative would complement China’s recent announcement that it would open up its market to Zimbabwean blueberries, with an exemption of tariffs.
“The future is indeed food and not dirty habits,” Mwale proclaimed. He pointed to the immediate need for farmers to turn their attention to more nutritious crops. “As the Chinese market opens up…it gives us much more scope,” he added.
Linda Nielsen, executive director of Zimbabwe’s Horticultural Development Council, described the agreement with China as a milestone for the country’s horticultural sector. She emphasized the need for cooperation between all stakeholders to develop policies that encourage investment and improve the quality of production.
Campbell’s blueberry farm uses cutting-edge practices to grow consistently high-quality blueberries. Each of those 240,000 plants is grown in pots that are imported from the Netherlands or South Africa. The farm uses water specially treated with UV and ozone for humidification and irrigation, with each plant getting a drink eight times a day. As soon as the blueberries are harvested, they have to be cooled down immediately into refrigerated storage to keep the fresh quality.
Rebecca Bonzo, an employee on Campbell’s farm, put the value of this job creation for women in stark terms. To harvest all of that it takes a lot of people—up to 300 women during the peak harvesting season. Some of them are single breadwinners – which they can now provide for their families,” she told us. She pointed out that “it’s delicate hands that are needed for a delicate fruit,” underlining the care required in handling blueberries.
Even with its developing blueberry industry, Zimbabwe is still Africa’s largest producer of tobacco. Climate adaptation isn’t the only reason more and more farmers are starting to understand that improving their own long-term prospects means branching out into crops such as blueberries. Morocco will become Africa’s top producer in 2024, projecting more than 80,000 tonnes. Last year, South Africa produced 25,000 tons.
Campbell shared his hope that the Zimbabwean government will do what it takes to establish an investor-friendly environment for agriculture. “It’s all good saying Zimbabwe is open for business but the underlying fundamentals need to be correct,” he stated, calling for supportive policies that ensure sustainable growth within the sector.