While interest remains high in Zimbabwe’s hemp industry, stakeholders are finding the going rough as the nascent sector unfolds.
Despite significant regulatory strides, Zimbabwe’s hemp industry is encountering several obstacles that threaten to slow its potential growth, Clever Isaya, CEO of the country’s Agricultural Marketing Authority (AMA) told the Zimbabwe Mail at a recent field day event.
Isaya said stakeholders have faced limited access to seeds, high cultivation costs, and poor market dynamics, leading to some buyers breaking previously arranged purchases.
Reports suggest that Zimbabwe has exported more than 8,000 tons of hemp, primarily flower biomass for CBD, with destinations including Poland, Switzerland, and Germany. But some of those deals may have been canceled.
‘Knowledge gap’
Another pressing issues in Zimbabwe hemp is the “knowledge gap” surrounding cannabis farming, according to Isaya. Many Zimbabwean farmers, particularly those in the nascent hemp industry, lack sufficient knowledge about best practices in cultivation. This gap, combined with high capital requirements, has created a barrier to entry for small-scale farmers, he said.
“Limited access to seeds has significantly slowed down production for many registered growers,” Isaya explained, noting that without local seed availability, many producers are forced to rely on expensive imports.
“We’re looking forward to the development of products like hemp cigarettes and a broader market for CBD oil,” he said, suggesting that innovation may eventually ease the challenges hemp farmers face.
Alongside these production challenges, Jonathan Mukuruba, agribusiness director at the AMA, emphasized earlier this year the importance of research and capacity building.
Recent history
Zimbabwe’s move toward hemp cultivation began in earnest in 2019, with the introduction of Industrial Hemp Regulations, Statutory Instrument 218. These regulations officially legalized the cultivation and production of industrial hemp, laying the foundation for what has become a growing industry. By 2020, the government had opened up the domestic market for CBD as a herbal medicine, and the Criminal Law Amendment Bill of 2022 further clarified the legal distinction between marijuana and hemp.
Despite these regulatory milestones, progress has been slower than anticipated, with efforts to develop hemp varieties suited to the Zimbabwean environment still ongoing.
Zimbabwe’s government views industrial hemp as a potential replacement for its declining tobacco industry, which currently accounts for about 20% of the country’s exports. However, for the sector to reach its full potential, experts agree that Zimbabwe must move beyond just CBD production and explore hemp’s diverse applications in food, fiber, and other industrial products.