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Local wheat production has been soaring commendably over the past few years.  

In 2022, farmers set a record in 56 years of commercial production of the cereal in the country by reaping 375 000 tonnes, a huge leap from 156 000 tonnes that they achieved the year prior. They broke the 2022 record the following year when they picked 460  000 tonnes.  By the end of last week, that record had been broken as 490 723 tonnes had been delivered to the Grain Marketing Board (GMB). 

Grain Marketing Board (GMB)

With more than 23 000 hectares (ha) still to be harvested from the 121 900ha put under the crop this winter, the country is on course to meeting the 2024 production guidance of 600  000 tonnes.

Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development acting chief director for Agricultural Advisory and Rural Development Services (AARDS) Mr Leonard Munamati told the latest edition of our sister paper, The Sunday Mail, that farmers are harvesting good-quality crop.

He was happy with the average yield as well — five tonnes per hectare. For a small grain like wheat, achieving five tonnes per hectare is really impressive.  In the past, the national average was three to four tonnes per hectare but it has been improving lately.  

We are confident that if we keep the momentum, the yield can rise to between seven and eight tonnes per hectare.    

We are proud of this growth and commend farmers, the Government, input suppliers and financial institutions for continuing to do so well.  

This is evidence of the progress that we can make as a country to, if we work hard together, ensure greater food self-sufficiency and growth at farm and national levels.

We attribute the record harvest this year to solid preparations by all involved in the wheat production chain.  

Inputs — from seed, fertiliser, chemicals to finance — were all available on time. 

Quelea birds have presented challenges in the past but this season, more vigilant scouting and availability of chemicals and machinery to control them at their roosting places did the trick.  

Equally important was the decision by the Government to ringfence power supply for wheat growing.  

This meant that farms had constant supply of electricity and their irrigation cycles went on as scheduled.

Furthermore, an attractive producer price has also been contributing to the wheat production boom in the country. This season, the GMB is paying $450 for a tonne of standard wheat and $470 for premium grade wheat, all paid in the greenback.  

This encouraged farmers to excel knowing that they would be paid handsomely at harvest time.

We praise the Government, farmers, input suppliers and the financial services sector for this fruitful collaboration. They must intensify it so that wheat importation and the heavy import bill it exacts on the economy, become history.