Zimbabwe Sees No Risk to Food Security Despite Corn Output Slump

(Bloomberg) -- Zimbabwe's government isn't anticipating a food shortfall this year despite a sharp slump in the production of corn and other grains due to erratic rainfall.

“Climate change is definitely affecting our country's production of grain,” Deputy Agriculture Minister Vangelis Haritatos said. “We assure the nation that the food situation is our top priority and there will certainly not be any shortages.”

The southern African nation produced a record 2.72 million tons of corn from its last planting season, but the current harvest is likely to slump to 1.56 million tons, Ministry of Agriculture projections show. It forecasts total cereal production of 1.75 million tons, well short of the 2.27 million ton national requirement. 

The country has 500,000 tons of grain in its strategic reserves that can be used to help plug the production shortfall, while millers were given permission several months ago to import corn to augment the supply, according to Haritatos. To mitigate against the effect of unpredictable rainfall and promote food self-sufficiency, the government aims to increase the irrigation of farmland, setting an initial target of 350,000 hectares (864,869 acres), he said. 

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