Online Reporter
Edgar Vhera
YOUTH farmers in Murewa District have joined national efforts to grow horticulture to a US$2 billion industry by 2030 after exporting mangetout peas to the United Kingdom (UK) and other markets, in their first year.
This comes after export marketer VegeFlora and Mount Pleasant Youth Group from Murewa partnered with the Government to produce and export peas to different markets across the world.
The 10-member youth group of farmers harvested and exported over 5 500 kilogrammes of snow max peas to the UK, Germany and South Africa.
Mount Pleasant Youth Group was formed under the Youth Employment and Entrepreneurship programme (YEE) funded by the SNV.
The group produced the snow max peas with support from the SNV Zimbabwe, while VegeFlora supported certification and marketing of the produce.
Group vice chairperson, Mr George Muru, said the group was targeting to increase the area under peas next season to maximise on earnings.
The proximity of a nearby dam (Mud), located just 100 metres from their plot, makes it easy for the group to expand their hectarage.
“We plan to increase our production from one hectare to four hectares next year, as we perfect production from our experience in our initial year.
“We have so far received two payments and on average we are getting about US$1,80 per kilogramme. We planted the first crop on March 7, followed by March 13 and lastly on March 15. We expect to finish harvesting the remaining crop at the end of this month, as we harvest every two to three days,” he said.
Mr Muru said transportation challenges hindered their ability to harvest daily, as their perishable product needs to be delivered to the airport cold rooms immediately after harvesting and packaging.
“At peak, we harvested 800 kilogrammes of produce per day, but now the yield is diminished as we reach the end of the season,” said Mr Muru.
Ward 19 local councillor, Mr Amos Gutu, said the youth were inspiring many people in their area.
“The group is funded by SNV with Casal Trust providing local services. It’s their first year to engage in peas production and export,” he said.
The Horticultural Development Council (HDC) horticulture update report for April 2025 shows that pea export volumes are projected to reach 4 800 tonnes, with contributions from both commercial and small-scale farmers.
The HDC said that although the exit of KLM airline affected UK exports in the short term, this is expected to improve in the medium to long term as new players and alternative routes are secured.
Zimbabwe is currently exporting horticultural produce worth US$80 annually, but with investment, this could grow to US$2 billion.
Meanwhile, statistics from the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZimStats) show that earnings from fresh peas exports rose 15 percent from US$2,909 million in 2023 to US$3,335 million last year.
In volume terms, it rose 12 percent from 2,559 million kilogrammes to 2,862 million kilogrammes.
