DT Correspondent
Agrifoods says its sales volumes for the first quarter ended December 31, 2023, grew by 18 percent to 9 832 tonnes from 8 313 tonnes sold in prior year on account of improved product availability.
The company said significant achievement in a difficult operating environment was due to improved strategic agreements with suppliers of key raw materials.
“Weather experts project that the 2023/2024 agricultural season will receive lower than normal rainfall induced by the El Nino phenomenon set to reduce agricultural output in the region.
Management is tasked with imploring strategic raw material procurement strategies to sustain operations, whilst also diversifying its retail lines away from dependence on agro-inputs,” the company says in its trading update for the first quarter.
The company further added that the operating environment remained challenging, characterised by the continued depreciation of the Zimbabwe Dollar against the United States Dollar and inflationary pressures. This was aggravated by the delayed onset of the rainy season and prolonged dry spells, typical of the predicted El Nino phenomenon. This had the effect of dampening most farming-related economic activities.
Meanwhile, the group’s sales volumes for the retail division’s key revenue drivers increased by 16 percent to 21,453 tonnes from 18,446 tonnes sold in the comparative prior year period. Improved fertiliser sales followed the reduction in prices to normal levels following the price spike in prior year as a result of global supply chain disruptions emanating from the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
Overall, the group anticipates that this year`s economic outturn will remain challenging, and ongoing cost containment measures will continue to be implemented. Agrifoods is a subsidiary of a leading agricultural-based industrial holding company in Zimbabwe – CFI Holdings Limited.
