Wedoany.com Report-Jun 23, Zimbabwe’s corn production for the 2025-26 marketing year is expected to more than double, reaching 1.3 million tonnes, compared to 635,000 tonnes in the previous year’s drought-affected harvest, according to a report from the US Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS). The increase is attributed to improved weather conditions.

The FAS noted: “This year’s crop development has benefited from a stronger La Niña weather pattern in the second half of the production season.” With higher output, corn imports are projected to decrease by 300,000 tonnes to 1 million tonnes in 2025-26, though this remains significant due to domestic demand estimated at 2.2 million tonnes, an 8% rise from 2024-25.

Most corn imports are expected to come from South Africa, which has about 1.5 million tonnes available for export in 2025-26. Corn remains Zimbabwe’s primary grain crop, but production faces challenges, particularly for communal farmers who cultivate 60% of the corn area yet contribute less than 40% of the yield due to lower productivity.

The FAS stated: “Farmers have limited access to irrigation technologies, subsequently more than 90% of corn production is reliant on rainfall.” Additional constraints include high input costs for fuel and fertilizer, alongside broader economic difficulties that limit farmers’ ability to maximize output.