On its 85th anniversary, the country’s biggest seed producer, Seed Co, says its decision over 25 years ago to expand beyond the borders is paying off.
The company launched its first seed variety in 1940. By the early 1990s, Seed Co held a commanding share of the market – and decided it was time to spread its wings to new fields.
“In the early 90’s with market share sitting at almost 90% in Zimbabwe it became obvious to us that further growth was only going to come from venturing into new markets in the region,” Seed Co group CEO Morgan Nzwere told guests at an event to mark the 85th anniversary.
The turning point came in 1996, when Seed Co listed on the stock exchange, boosting its investment in research, expansion, and farmer support. In 1998, the company took its first step outside Zimbabwe by acquiring a 51% stake in Mozambique’s Semoc and establishing Seed Co Zambia. Malawi followed in 2000, the same year Seed Co International was registered in Botswana.
At the time of its listing, Seed Co was producing just 1,000 metric tonnes of seed for export, generating US$2 million in revenue. Today, it operates in multiple African markets, selling over 50,000 metric tonnes of seed annually and recording a turnover of US$120 million.
In 2014, the company then partnered with Limagrain, one of the world’s biggest seed producers, helping the company deepen its research by accessing more testing technology.
“Over the last few years we have seen quite a few global seed companies eying Africa. The fact that we went into partnership with Limagrain in 2014 is strong testament to our being forward looking and ahead of the pack, which has created very important first mover advantages for both us and Limagrain,” says Nzwere.
The company reinvests 10% of its turnover into research and development, which has become more critical as climate change increases demand for resilient seed. It has research stations in Arcturus, Kadoma, Tshokwe in Mozambique, Lusaka and Mpongwe in Zambia and Kitale in the Kenyan Highlands. Production capacity is being increased at sites in Zambia, Malawi, and Kenya. Seed Co is spending close to US$30 million on a new production facilty in Arusha, in Tanzania, a country which this year became Africa’s second largest maize producer after South Africa.
In Zimbabwe, Seed Co recently opened a new artificial seed drier in Zimbabwe, built for US$12 million.
