Online Reporter
Theseus Mauruki Shambare
The Agricultural Marketing Authority (AMA), working with the police, veterinary authorities and dairy industry stakeholders, has seized hundreds of boxes and cases of dairy and related products in a crackdown on suspected smuggling and non-compliant trade in Harare.
The operation, which began last Thursday, resulted in the confiscation of 79 boxes of Milkit Milkshake, 32 cases of Danone Dairy yoghurt, 305 boxes of Gold Dairy full cream milk and 320 boxes of Enjoy Dairy juice from selected trading points in the capital.
AMA chief executive officer Ms Alice Mapfiza said the operation was aimed at protecting local producers and ensuring that businesses operating in the agricultural market complied with the country’s import and regulatory requirements.
“When we talk about promoting local production, we also have to ensure that our farmers and processors are operating in a market where there is fair competition,” Ms Mapfiza said.
“Our responsibility is to help create an orderly agricultural marketing environment in which compliant businesses and producers are protected from unfair market practices.”
The blitz is being conducted jointly with the Zimbabwe Republic Police, the Department of Veterinary Services, the Zimbabwe Dairy Farmers Association and the Zimbabwe Dairy Processors Association.
AMA said the involvement of the different agencies was intended to strengthen enforcement while ensuring that dairy products circulating on the domestic market meet applicable regulatory and veterinary requirements.
The crackdown comes as Zimbabwe’s dairy industry continues to increase production. According to AMA market intelligence data, processor milk intake reached 61 319 159 litres during the first six months of 2026, up from 57 251 152 litres during the same period last year, representing a 7,11 percent increase.
Total milk production also rose from approximately 76,7 million litres in 2020 to 121,8 million litres in 2025. Ms Mapfiza said protecting the domestic market was therefore critical to sustaining investment across the dairy value chain.
“The issue is not legitimate trade. The issue is compliance. Anyone participating in Zimbabwe’s agricultural markets must do so within the law.
“At the same time, where local farmers and processors have the capacity to supply the market, we must create an environment that allows them to compete and grow,” she said.
AMA said the operation was not intended to stop legitimate imports, which could still play a role in addressing supply gaps, but to ensure that products entering Zimbabwe followed prescribed import and regulatory procedures.
The authority said the Harare operation would continue, with enforcement expected to extend to other provinces and commodities as authorities strengthen surveillance against non-compliant agricultural products.
