Pineapple farming changes Chimanimani woman’s life

IT is 5 o’clock in the morning and the chirruping of birds signals the beginning of a new day.

Rhodah Munderedza, who hails from Nyabamba Village under Chief Muusha, Chimanimani, Manicaland province, is already up. Clad in her work suit and pair of gumboots, she is armed with the tools of her newly found trade — pineapple farming.

Munderedza, an environment health technician by profession, said farming must be part of one’s wish list to succeed.

“Firstly, farming is a passion for me. Anything that you do without love for it becomes laborious. Farming is so demanding that long nails and earrings are not needed. Instead, the dressing is gumboots and work suits all the time,” she says.

The 45-year-old secured the three-hectare virgin land in 2018 and at that time, was not sure of what to put on that vast land.

To make matters worse, she was financially unstable.

“We came up with the idea of pineapple farming and in 2022, we planted the first batch. By that time, we did not do it in a professional way and we had to go on Google and research from books to get proper information. We also consulted fellow local farmers.” Through passion, commitment and dedication, Munderedza is slowly beginning to realise her dream.

She has two full-time employees.-newsday