THE Horticultural Development Council (HDC) has urged exporters to the European Union (EU) to use regional airfreight hubs and connections through Ethiopia, Doha and Dubai when KLM/Martin Air Service suspends flights to some African countries this April.
The freightliner recently announced intentions to suspend service to some African routes including Zimbabwe.
HDC chief executive officer, Mrs Linda Nielsen said the suspension of the KLM/Martin Air service to Harare was a matter of concern for Zimbabwe's horticulture industry - a sector that contributes substantially to the nation's economy through exports.
"For 27 years, KLM has provided a critical link to our largest market destination, Amsterdam, which serves as the gateway for Zimbabwean produce into the broader EU market.
"Airfreight services across the African continent have been affected by evolving EU carbon emission regulations and operational constraints within airline fleets," she said.
The carbon emission regulations and operational constraints have resulted in a significant reduction in available cargo capacity, impacting several markets, including Zimbabwe.
Mrs Nielsen said: "In our case, a decline in the production of key export crops such as peas and flowers during the 2022/23 season reduced Zimbabwe's negotiating power for scarce cargo space. This led to KLM/Martin Air's temporary reduction of flights to Harare in February 2024. Although flights were later reinstated, this served as a wake-up call for the industry."
The HDC boss said while the suspension of KLM/Martin Air services may cause some short-term disruptions, optimism was high about the long-term outlook.
Mrs Nielsen said Zimbabwean exporters face increasing production costs driven by multiple excessive regulatory compliance costs, the 25 percent compulsory liquidation and the Intermediated Money Transfer Tax (IMTT) among others.
"These challenges, if left unaddressed, undermine the competitiveness of Zimbabwean produce in the international market. The horticulture industry is actively engaging the Government for policy adjustments that will attract investment and enhance Zimbabwe's position in global markets," she said.
Horticulture concern, Kuminda's chief executive officer, Mr Clarence Mwale, added his voice, saying though there was no change to the United Kingdom (UK) market, there were also options with other airlines to EU.
"This is a turbulent start to 2025 export season with KLM announcing cessation of freight operations to Harare. It's not so good for our Netherlands and rest of EU deliveries, but markets have been pushing for more ocean freight. Maybe it's time to reposition ourselves for more and early ocean freight," he said.
Mr Mwale assured farmers to continue with their production business and not worry as there were also options with other airlines to the EU.
Kuminda recently launched a new blueberry variety in Harare and called on small-scale farmers to register for contracting for production of the crop.
It has signed an agreement for exclusive rights to Dutch breeder, Fruit Vision's blueberries, which they will be the first to establish in Zimbabwe.
Apart from blueberries, Kuminda is contracting farmers in mangetout and sugar snap peas for export to the EU market with exports set to start in early May to catch very high prices on the international market.
Kuminda is a multinational company founded in Zimbabwe and jointly owned by Messrs Mwale and Fred Matenga, whose main goal is to empower African farmers by linking them with international markets.