Lovemore Kadzura
Post Reporter
THE country is poised to witness a decline in the production of coffee as the negative shocks of extreme climatic change takes toll during the 2024 and 2025 season.
In addition to poor weather, farmers are also expected to remove ageing crops in 2025, which will result in reduced yields, a recent update from the Horticultural Development Council revealed.
In a statement, the HDC projected that coffee production in 2024 will be between 300 and 350 metric tonnes, down from 450 metric tonnes achieved in 2023.
In 2025, it is anticipated that production will further go down to between 250 and 300 metric tonnes.
“Coffee producers are bracing for a challenging year. They expect to produce between 300 and 350 metric tonnes in 2024, from 450mt in 2023. The severe drought has hit coffee plantations this year. Farmers plan to remove older crops, which may lead to even lower yields in 2025, with an expected output of 230 to 300 metric tonnes.
“Looking ahead, coffee production is projected at 400 metric tonnes in 2026. This recovery will rely on providing inputs to smallholder farmers on time, empowering them to increase production. For the sector to reach its full potential, long-term investment to increase production is required,” said the council.
Coffee Commodity Association of Zimbabwe vice-chairman, Mr Norman Marukutira said the El Nino-induced drought has hit small-scale coffee producers the hardest since they have no capacity to invest in irrigation.
He called on banks to avail long term loans for farmers to be able to pay back.
“High temperatures associated with the El Nino drought affected coffee farmers in a big way this season. When our coffee was flowering, it lost a number of leaves. The rivers and springs where we source water for irrigation from dried up. Most small-scale farmers have not invested in proper irrigation equipment and rely mostly on gravity irrigation, but the streams have dried up.
“The only way out is for us to invest in irrigation, and this is where we are calling upon banks to come on board with packages tailor-made for coffee farmers. At the moment, the demands by banks are just unaffordable to farmers. The sector requires long term loans, not the short-term loans currently available on the market.
“Farmers can cushion themselves from the drought effects by diversifying their crop range to avoid total losses. We are also negotiating with buyers so that they promptly pay for the delivered crop so that we can pay debts in time and reinvest in the land.
“Our top grade coffee is exported to Nespresso Switzerland and other grades are marketed locally. Manicaland is the only coffee producing province in the country, and the produce is also exported to other countries where it is on high demand. It is produced mainly by commercial farmers, while small-scale farmers are on the rise,” said Mr Marukutira.
