Online Reporter
Thupeyo Muleya
Beitbridge Bureau
THE massive citrus project at the integrated Zhovhe Farm near Beitbridge is gaining momentum, with the first harvest from some of its 230 000 orange trees recently completed.
The farm, owned by local company Toppick Investments, has already delivered more than 500 tonnes of oranges to the nearby Beitbridge Juicing Plant, a subsidiary of Schweppes Zimbabwe.
Drawing water from Zhovhe Dam, one of Zimbabwe’s 10 largest water bodies, Toppick Investments has established a highly integrated farming operation.
Speaking during a media tour of high-impact projects in Matabeleland South province, led by Deputy Minister of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Dr Omphile Marupi and Permanent Secretary in the ministry Mr Nick Mangwana, the company’s chief executive officer, Mr Danisa Moyo, said the project was gathering steam.
“So far, we have harvested and delivered over 500 tonnes of oranges from 800 hectares to the Beitbridge Juicing Company,” he said.
“This is our first harvest from a project we started in 2020, which has created 500 jobs — 300 seasonal and 200 permanent.
“Three-quarters of our workforce are women, and this project has transformed lives in the community.”
The planting of the orange trees was done in five phases — 180 hectares in April 2021; 220 hectares in November 2021; 60 hectares in February 2022; and a further 280 hectares plus 60 hectares in August 2023.
The latest phase also included 80 hectares of lemon trees.
Varieties under cultivation include Benny Valencia, Turkey and Midnight oranges, while the lemon crop is the Eureka variety.
The farm uses a micro-jet citrus irrigation system and plans to introduce more citrus varieties in the near future.
Mr Moyo said they expect to harvest at least 3 000 tonnes next year for both local and export markets.
Plans are also in place to install a solar power plant to supplement electricity supplies and to construct a modern sorting shed for grading produce before it reaches the market.
Since starting operations around 2015, Toppick Investments has acquired 17 irrigation pivots, ensuring year-round crop production.
Dr Marupi commended the farm owners for putting the land to productive use, creating jobs and contributing to the local, provincial and national economy.
He urged them to expand community social responsibility initiatives and share knowledge with surrounding communal irrigation farmers to transform the area into a greenbelt.
“We are seeing a lot of citrus projects coming up in Beitbridge and a lot has been happening in the economic development sector and recently we saw President Mnangagwa commissioning a huge industrial park in rural Beitbridge. The progress on the ground is impressive,” said Mr Mangwana.
The Beitbridge Juice Plant, which runs on solar power during the day and the national grid at night, now sources fruit from Zhovhe Farm and six other local producers.
Schweppes Zimbabwe spokesperson Ms Ropafadzo Gwanetsa said the plant is targeting to process at least 40 000 tonnes of citrus this season, part of a broader push for rural industrialisation.
Citrus farming in Beitbridge has been steadily growing since smallholder farmers introduced the crop at a communal irrigation project in 2011.
Today, 189 communal farmers there produce an average of 700 tonnes of oranges each season for the juice plant.
Tinaye Agere
Online Reporter