By Jonathan Mbiriyamveka
Zimbabwe is looking to strengthen the link between farmers, food producers, chefs, hotels and other tourism businesses as it seeks to turn the country’s culinary heritage into a source of enterprise, jobs and income.
The Ministry of Tourism and Hospitality Industry says its new approach to gastronomy is designed to benefit the entire food and tourism value chain rather than focusing only on restaurants and chefs.
Speaking at a Gastronomy Tourism Masterclass held under the Sanganai/Hlanganani/Dzimbahwe World Tourism Expo, Ministry chief director Ms Tariro Musonza said Government wanted to strengthen linkages between farmers, food producers, hospitality establishments, communities and entrepreneurs.
The objective is to ensure that more of the economic value generated by tourism food consumption remains within local communities.
“Our approach is therefore to move from food as a cultural asset to food as a commercial tourism product,” Musonza said.
Zimbabwe has a broad range of indigenous agricultural and natural food resources that could provide the foundation for a stronger gastronomy industry.
These include indigenous grains, traditional vegetables, locally produced livestock, wild fruits and herbs.
However, having the ingredients is only the first step.
For gastronomy to become a meaningful contributor to the tourism economy, farmers must be connected to reliable markets, hospitality establishments must be able to access quality local produce consistently, and food businesses must have the skills and capacity to meet market demand.
This is where the Government’s Gastronomy Strategy is expected to play a role.
According to Musonza, the strategy provides a framework for developing gastronomy as a tourism cluster and seeks to strengthen the value chain from production to consumption.
The approach could create opportunities for farmers to supply hotels, restaurants, lodges and catering companies with indigenous products while allowing food entrepreneurs to process and package traditional foods for wider markets.
For young people and women in particular, Government sees opportunities in areas such as catering, restaurants, food processing, culinary tourism, food festivals and value-added food products.
The strategy therefore places gastronomy at the intersection of tourism, agriculture and enterprise development.
A stronger farm-to-table model could also allow tourism establishments to differentiate themselves by offering visitors locally sourced and culturally authentic food.
Instead of importing or relying heavily on standardised food products, hotels and lodges could increasingly incorporate locally produced indigenous ingredients into their menus.
Such an approach could create a wider economic chain around a single tourist meal.
A farmer growing an indigenous grain could supply a processor, who in turn supplies a restaurant, where a chef transforms the ingredient into a traditional or contemporary dish consumed by a tourist.
The economic benefits could then spread across several businesses and communities.
Musonza said the Government wanted to “retain more value within local communities” while strengthening gastronomy’s contribution to the tourism economy.
But building such linkages will require more than encouraging hotels and restaurants to buy local.
Issues of production volumes, consistency, pricing, food safety, quality control, packaging, transportation and market access will have to be addressed if indigenous food products are to move from informal or household consumption into the formal tourism economy.
The ministry has identified improved food safety and quality as one of the priorities under its gastronomy agenda.
This will be particularly important as Zimbabwe seeks to market its cuisine to international visitors and potentially expand the commercialisation of indigenous foods.
Skills development will also be critical.
Government is supporting plans for the Africa International Tourism Academy on Culinary Arts in Victoria Falls, which is expected to promote culinary skills, research, innovation and stronger links between training institutions and the tourism industry.
The proposed academy could provide a pipeline of trained chefs and other culinary professionals capable of taking traditional Zimbabwean cuisine into hotels, restaurants and tourism experiences while maintaining its authenticity.
Zimbabwe has already sought to raise its profile in gastronomy tourism.
The country hosted the first UN Tourism Regional Forum on Gastronomy Tourism for Africa in Victoria Falls in 2024, which Government says positioned Zimbabwe as an important participant in the continent’s gastronomy tourism discourse.
The current challenge is converting that momentum into businesses operating across the value chain.
For farmers, the opportunity is potentially significant if tourism creates new and dependable markets for indigenous produce.
For chefs and hospitality businesses, locally sourced ingredients could provide a way of developing distinctive menus and experiences.
For entrepreneurs, the emerging sector could create opportunities in food processing, packaging, catering, culinary tours and events.
And for communities, a stronger local supply chain could mean retaining a greater share of tourism expenditure.
Musonza urged stakeholders at the masterclass to move beyond discussions and identify practical business opportunities that can be implemented after the event.
The message from Government is clear: Zimbabwe’s gastronomy ambitions will not be achieved by chefs alone.
They will depend on whether the country can connect the farmer growing the ingredient, the entrepreneur processing it, the chef preparing it and the tourist willing to pay for the experience.
If those connections can be built effectively, the humble traditional meal could become the starting point of a much larger tourism value chain.
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