Medlina Magwenzi, Chief Director of Agricultural and Rural Development Advisory Services (ARDAS) in Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Agriculture, visiting hybrid cotton research plots at the Kadoma Research Centre in Kadoma, Zimbabwe, on April 30, 2026. Photo: Lovejoy Mtongwiza, bird Story Agency.
A new generation of hybrid cotton seeds is giving Zimbabwean farmers fresh reason for optimism. Developed to deliver higher yields and withstand climate shocks and pests, the seeds are helping to boost productivity and improve livelihoods in farming communities.
By Elia Ntali, bird story agency
For more than two decades, 56-year-old cotton farmer Aleck Bikostone has dedicated his life to cotton farming in Chinhoyi – the north-central capital of Zimbabwe’s Mashonaland West Province – despite market disturbances, climate change, and rising costs of input that threatened the crop.
Standing among cotton fields at a research farm in Kadoma along the road between Harare and Bulawayo, Bikostone tells the story of a cotton farming journey that has long hours of labour and perseverance despite global price fluctuations, which he describes as both a blessing and a challenge.
According to Stewart Mubonderi, the national chairman of the Cotton Producers and Marketers Association of Zimbabwe, the Zimbabwe Government has supported up to 400,000 cotton farmers at the household level, although this has reduced to 350,000 in recent years. Once one of Africa’s leading cotton producers, Zimbabwe saw seed cotton production fall from a record 350,703 tonnes in 2010/11 to around 28,000–29,000 tonnes in 2025. The industry may now be turning a corner: the Agricultural Marketing Authority projects output of about 38,500 tonnes in 2026, raising hopes of a gradual revival.
Despite these challenges, cotton remains an important source of cash income for many rural households, particularly in areas where few alternative crops can thrive. The sector is now at a crossroads, with government and industry efforts focused on improving farmer returns, increasing production, rebuilding value chains, and restoring cotton’s role as a driver of rural economic development and industrial growth.
“Cotton farming runs in my blood. For me to be who I am, it’s cotton production. I have managed to send my four children to school, all of whom have now graduated. It has not been easy though, at one point, the dwindling prices (from US$1.35 to a paltry US$0.35 cents per kilogram) had an impact on my family,” says Bikostone.
“Imagine having spent so much money on the crop and in return there is nothing tangible. However, as time passed, I adjusted. Like I said, cotton farming is rooted in me. I soldiered on, and I still produce a better crop year in, year out. With the coming of the hybrid seeds, our future looks bright,” said Bikostone.
This veteran farmer’s different tune is thanks to a new generation of hybrid cotton seeds now available on the market. Unlike traditional seed varieties, hybrid seeds are developed by crossing two parent plants to combine desirable traits such as higher yields, improved drought tolerance, stronger resistance to pests and diseases, and more consistent performance in the field. For farmers facing increasingly unpredictable weather and rising production costs, these improved seeds are offering the prospect of better harvests and higher incomes.
“I had been using the Open-Pollinated Varieties (OPV), but after being introduced to the hybrid seed varieties, the yield has improved, and the cost of production is conducive. At first, I hesitated, and later on I embraced it, and it worked wonders. With enough support and viable prices, many farmers will return to cotton production because it can significantly improve household incomes,” said Bikostone.
His experience with the hybrid seeds is part of a transformation for the cotton industry in Zimbabwe where stakeholders are collaborating to restore the crop to its status of being the white gold.
Tapiwa Bhiri, a Chinhoyi based cotton seed breeder, says he started breeding the seed in 2025 and is delighted to be part of the cotton seed evolution.
“I joined the cotton seed breeding program last year. Cotton seed breeding requires monitoring to guarantee quality. During breeding, we use the 50 metres by 15 lines layout, which helps in maintaining quality. Today, I am happy because cotton farming has provided income to support my family and other projects outside farming,” said Bhiri.
Bikostone is not the only one who is seeing value in the hybrid seed, Arnold Gwengo, another farmer also from Chinhoyi, shared the same sentiments.
“With hybrid seeds you will never go wrong. I started using the varieties a few years ago and, honestly speaking, the results have been encouraging. One thing that is encouraging is that the hybrid seeds are resistant to pests and diseases,” said Gwengo.
Nyasha Gandiwa, Head of Research at Quton Seed Company, a leading supplier of cotton seed in Zimbabwe, says improved genetics are central to efforts to revive the country’s struggling cotton sector. The company operates seed breeding and agronomy programmes from Kadoma and Harare and has been developing new hybrid varieties designed to boost yields while helping farmers cope with climate and pest pressures.
“We have new genetic technologies that we are developing, and some are already on the market,” Gandiwa said. “In Zimbabwe, cotton production has been on a downward spiral, and we are targeting to revitalize the cotton industry.”
According to Gandiwa, improved seed genetics account for a significant share of a farmer’s potential productivity, although they must be combined with good farming practices to achieve the best results.
“In terms of research, genetics contribute about 50% of the final yield that the farmer gets, and the other 50% goes to crop management and crop husbandry practices that farmers get to use,” he said. “It is crucial that the farmer makes use of the best technologies available so that we improve farmer viability and yield.”
One of the main benefits of the new hybrid varieties, he said, is their ability to
withstand increasingly challenging growing conditions while producing larger harvests.
“The advantages of these technologies are that they bring increased yield and are resistant to climate shocks and pests,” Gandiwa said.
He noted that while average cotton yields in Zimbabwe currently hover around 500 kilograms per hectare, farmers using improved varieties under good management conditions could achieve dramatically higher production levels.
“A farmer in Africa can achieve four or five tonnes per hectare, currently production figures in Zimbabwe in this current year we are talking about 500kgs per hectare,” he said.
The difference, Gandiwa argues, could be transformative for rural livelihoods.
“Using hybrid seeds we can actually have 4 tonnes per hectare. Imagine a farmer who was doing 500kg per hectare now does 4 tonnes that translates to good returns and the farmers’ livelihoods improves,” he said, adding that some of the new varieties can produce “up to 64 bolls per plant.”
Promotion Harutizwi, an agriculture extension officer from the Zimbabwe Farmers Union (ZFU), said hybrid seeds will play a critical role in the revitalization of the cotton industry.
“We have seen a great transformation from retained seeds to hybrid seeds. The good thing is hybrid seeds are resistant to pests and diseases which give high yields. They also don’t drop lint which gives high value market price as compared to the retained seeds. Hybrid seeds are critical in the revival of the cotton industry in the country and across Africa,” he said.
Kaustubh Joshi, Quton Zimbabwe general manager, speaking at their hybrid cotton seed demonstration plot at a research farm in Kadoma, said the company’s objective was to revitalize the cotton industry in Zimbabwe and beyond.
“We are developing cotton seeds that we have taken to some parts of Africa and our aim is to develop climate smart seeds and resuscitate the cotton industry. Our objective is to produce seeds that bring high yields and also transform livelihoods for the farmers,” said Joshi.
Chief Director of Agricultural and Rural Development Advisory Services (ARDAS) in Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Water Resources Development, Medlina Magwenzi, confirmed the government’s commitment to restoring cotton production and the use of hybrid seed through research.
“We are realising that the cotton industry has been dwindling. But as a government, we know that this crop is just not a crop. It is a crop that we are looking forward to uplift the livelihoods of the smallholder farmers in Zimbabwe,” she said.
Magwenzi said the government is anchoring upon hybrid seed varieties to revive the industry.
“We want to make sure that we support this hybrid seed because hybrid seed will not only yield higher in the rain-fed fields… we want to make sure that we put a lot of water across these smallholder communities to make sure that we boost our yield. At the same time, we’re also saying we are trying to put an enabling environment starting from seed production which should be genetically approved. We also want to make sure there is availability of fertilisers,” Magwenzi said.
Asked what more can be done to incentivise farmers, she noted that markets had been a challenge for farmers and pricing needed to be dealt.
Zimbabwe’s cotton revival is not being driven by fleets of tractors or vast mechanised farms. Instead, it begins with a tiny but powerful innovation inside a seed.
Bird Story Agency
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