Yes, we can deliver our own bread!

There is so much lack of information on wheat production and its quality in Zimbabwe. It is said that the flour made out of our wheat is of such poor quality that it cannot make bread.

When one probes further one will realise that most of what is said is premised on hearsay. There is so much lack of information on global agricultural development, which makes citizens scoff at anything that remotely resembles a success story.

Perchance we have become a nation of non-believers because of myriad glitch-starts in the past.

But the bready news is the announcement by Grain Millers Association of Zimbabwe (GMAZ) that it has appointed the National Wheat Contract Farming Committee (NWCFC), a technical committee to lead the winter wheat contract farming for the next three years.

That, indeed, is great bready tidings.

Comprising agriculture sector specialists, among them Walter Chigodora (Seed Co), Bruce Mawere (Export Trading Group), Roopak Bandra Holland (Holbud Limited), Brendan Smyth (Origen), Keith Bell (Agro Chemicals Association), Adrian Carbutt (Rift Valley), Prosper Chiyanike (Metbank Limited), Johnson Mahanya (Ecobank), Exodus Donzvambeva (Wintertons), Andy Pascoe (Commercial Farmers’ Union), Shadreck Makombe (Zimbabwe Commercial Farmers’ Union) and Tapiwa Mashingaidze (Fertiliser Manufacturers’ Association), the NWCFC’s appointment comes at an opportune moment as it dovetails with the goals of our economic blueprint, Transitional Stabilisation Programme (TSP), which will facilitate the implementation of Vision 2030.

With a princely purse of $80 million, a dedicated team of experts in agriculture, a shared vision and supportive policymakers, the earmarked 150 000 tonnes annually can easily be surpassed, and position the nation state for delivery of own bread.

The historical burden

History recorded that on the morning of October 5, 1789, between 6 000 and 7 000 women, who worked in the Paris markets had gone to work on empty stomachs, as usual, and their families were hungry, because there was no bread, which made up almost 90 percent of the diet of the lower classes.

Motivated by pangs of hunger they took on a 21-kilometre march to Versailles to capture and bring back to Paris “the baker, the baker’s wife and the baker’s son”.

“To Versailles for bread,” the women shouted with their weapons held high, for it was reported at the Palace of Versailles that bread was in abundance. Therefore, they were on a mission to see the King (Louis XVI) and demand bread. To ascertain that there would be an end to food shortages, they were going to bring the King and his family back to Paris.

It is also recorded that Marie Antoinette, who was especially hated by the revolutionaries for her extravagant spending and blamed for the country’s financial problems, is said to have said (even though there’s no evidence): “If they have no bread, let them eat cake.”

Both the French King and his Queen were out of touch with the reality of the situation in their country, thus they became enemies of the people; the bakers who could not deliver bread.

That is just how serious the issue of bread was and still is.

Mwatwara (2013) writes in a paper titled “Running twice as fast while remaining in the same position: Settler wheat production in Southern Rhodesia, 1928-1965: “Historically, discussions among the country’s agricultural policymakers have for the most part mainly centred on the unprofitability of local wheat production and the merits of concentrating on export crops such as tobacco and cotton in order to generate foreign exchange with which to purchase wheat in global markets.”

He contends that “answers to this widening gap between wheat supply and demand have been sought for more than a century, but the lack of historical knowledge on how this historical conundrum has been dealt with is astounding”.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

Wheat production in Rhodesia was played down due to a number of issues, chief among them lack of financial benefits. Farmers were interested in cash crops such as maize and tobacco, which had higher yields, and relegated wheat to winter farming.

Summer farming could have been problematic due to weed attacks and that its quality was lower than the winter crop by an average of 3lbs (Mwatwara 2013), but through mechanisation and financial support quality could still be improved. Mechanisation reduces labour costs, and encourages research into varieties that can do well under certain conditions, which conditions can still be changed or altered.

At Matopos Experimental Station (Matopos Research Station), established in 1903, wheat breading was reportedly underway, but work was hamstrung by lack of facilities. Over a century later the research station is still financially burdened, thus limiting research work.

The myth that the wheat grown in Rhodesia and in independent Zimbabwe is of poor quality has its roots in colonial governments. Although there was a shift in government support for wheat farming, after the failure of tobacco due to the Great Depression (1929-1939) as farmers were keen to recoup their losses, the success was short-lived.

The quality of wheat was compromised by lack of seriousness on the part of both the Government and farmers. To mitigate the impact of the World War II between 1939 and 1945, Government encouraged efficient methods of production.

However, such “efficient” methods did not find favour in mainly small-scale farmers, with only large-scale producers making profits.

During this period, the quality of wheat deteriorated due to lack of information on both farming and storage as well as funding. Whites in colonial Rhodesia still hooked to the mother country, preferred blending local wheat and imported brands to have “quality” bread. However, the desire to improve the quality of wheat grown was rather lukewarm.

With successive governments playing into the blame game, wheat production took a nosedive, and quality deteriorated as the desire to make profit overwhelmed the rulebook.

The Land Apportionment Act of 1930 and Land Tenure Act of 1969 did not help matters as rich arable land fell into the hands of whites, who were in the minority.

Taking lessons from Israel

Zimbabwe boasts over 10 000 water bodies, vast arable land, enjoys sunny weather throughout the year and receives average rainfalls, but still imports wheat using scarce foreign currency.

The milling industry cannot keep on burdening the Government, and Government, on the other hand, cannot keep on shielding non-performers. There is need for Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) with a view to improving the agriculture sector, which is the backbone of our economy.

The myth that wheat grown in Zimbabwe is of poor quality should be debunked and in its place a new mantra embedded; it is not about conditions, it is about willpower.

Milling companies aver that they blend local wheat with 30 percent imported varieties to improve the quality of wheat, since the quality grown here falls short, but when stocks go down they resort to reserved local stocks, and consumers can still not tell the difference in the quality of bread delivered.

Reportedly, two of the country’s biggest milling companies, National Foods Limited and Blue Ribbon Foods,  have around the end of 2017, and June 2018 been relying on the 158 000 tonnes of wheat produced locally in 2017.

The country requires between 400 000 and 450 000 tonnes of wheat each year, translating to at least 25 000 tonnes monthly, to meet demand pegged at one million loaves per day. Yet wheat production is on the decline.

In the years 1990, 1999, and 2001, annual wheat production peaked at 325 000 tonnes, 324 000 tonnes and 325 000 tonnes respectively, due to technical and financial support accorded to farmers.

Figures headed north starting from 2002 when output was recorded at 150 000 tonnes, maintaining annual production figures above 100 000 tonnes until 2008 when production dropped to 38 000 tonnes, 33 700 in 2012, 24 700 tonnes in 2013, 34 000 tonnes in 2014 and around 20 000 tonnes in 2016.

In 2017 and 2018 production peaked at 158 000 tonnes and 200 000 tonnes, respectively. Riding on this success, Government and other stakeholders like GMAZ, can draw lessons from Israel that has been able to make the best out of its lacks.

Notwithstanding its geographical implications, which naturally do not favour farming, Israel’s agriculture is highly developed. It is a powerful industry. With only 20 percent arable land, unfavourable climate and sparse water sources, Israel is a major exporter of fresh produce, and is a world leader in agricultural technologies.

From drip irrigation, dairy farming, grain cocoons, biological pest control and other natural pesticides, Israel has been able to feed not only its citizens, but the world at large. It took Israel 30 years of research through Professor David Levy at Hebrew University to come up with a potato strain that thrives in hot, dry climates and desert regions like the Middle East, and can be irrigated using saltwater.

If Israel can do it in largely dessert conditions, what stops us from producing our own bread, using locally produced ingredients and save on foreign currency? Climatic conditions are not a factor in a country richly endowed.

Production costs should be lowered through technological advancements and Government policies, so that more farmers take up wheat farming. The unbundling of the Grain Marketing Board (GMB) into two entities will also go a long way in giving a commercial jolt to wheat farming, storage and distribution.

Yes, Mr Douglas Kwande founder of Brainman Investments is right, we can deliver our own bread. It is in our power to change our outcomes as envisaged by our Vision 2030 agenda.