By Conrad Mwanawashe
At the heart of a billion-dollar enterprise lies a simple, powerful truth: real growth is sown in the earth.
This is the story of Innscor Africa, not merely as an agro-industrial giant, but as a central pillar of the agricultural landscape. In the past year, the group’s direct investment in the land—through its own corporate farms and a robust contract farming scheme—saw 15,000 hectares of summer and winter crops planted, yielding 70,000 metric tonnes of produce.
This massive agricultural output is the engine of a business model built on a profound integration with the local economy. Innscor’s success is a direct result of its strategy to act as a guaranteed market for farmers, a capacity-builder for its workforce, and a processor that transforms raw materials into essential goods for the nation.
While its financial results are headline-grabbing, the more compelling narrative is how this scale has been leveraged to create a model of inclusive value, deliberately channeling benefits back to the farmers who supply it and the workers who drive its operations.
From Farm to Factory: Integrating and Elevating Agriculture
At its core, Innscor is a master processor of agricultural produce. Its business model is built on taking raw materials from the field and turning them into essential consumer goods. This vertical integration is most evident in its strategic investments in both its own corporate farms and a robust contract farming scheme.
Furthermore, its subsidiaries like Nutrimaster and the expanding “Profarmer” retail network (now 61 stores nationwide) are critical support pillars. Fertiliser volumes sold through this channel grew by 74% over the comparative year, with robust demand in the row-cropping and tobacco sectors.
By commissioning a new granulation facility, Nutrimaster is reducing reliance on imported raw materials, deepening the local agricultural value chain and ensuring a more sustainable supply of inputs for the farming sector.
“The facility is expected to drive further efficiencies in blending, enhance product quality, and result in a more sustainable and consistent supply of product into the farming sector. Nutrimaster remains a central contributor to the Group’s “AGrowth” contract farming programme, providing critical inputs for local agricultural production,” group Chairman Addington Chinake said.
Innscor doesn’t just buy from farmers; it actively partners in building their capacity and productivity.
Sharing the Success: The Employee Share Trust
Innscor has institutionalised the principle of inclusive growth through the Innscor Africa Employee Share Trust. This is not a peripheral corporate social responsibility project but a core part of its governance, designed to ensure that employees share in the financial success they help create.
For the 2025 financial year, the board declared a total dividend of US$830,000 to the Employee Share Trust, up from USD $765,000 the previous year.
This trust supports qualifying employees “with both dividend flow and various loan schemes,” creating a direct link between the company’s performance and the financial well-being of its workforce.
Driving Growth Through Strategic Processing
The billion-dollar revenue milestone was driven by strong volume growth across Innscor’s core segments, all of which are rooted in processing local agricultural produce.
Mill-Bake: The Cereals division continued to deliver encouraging growth, led by the “Pearlenta Instant” and “Nutri-Active” portfolios, both of which continue to gain popularity in the breakfast cereal category, according to Chinake.
Protein: Comprising brands like Colcom and Irvine’s, this segment is a direct offtaker from the livestock sector. Despite challenges, fresh pork volumes grew 25%, and upstream piggery operations saw animal weights improve due to enhanced genetics and feed conversion—a direct result of strategic investment in the agricultural supply base.
Beverage & Light Manufacturing: Units like Prodairy recorded a 27% volume growth, with its “Revive” dairy blend and maheu categories growing 35%. This segment transforms local milk and grains into popular, affordable consumer goods.
A Platform for Growth
For Zimbabwe’s agro-economy, the lesson is clear: when local agricultural commodities are processed locally, they create far more value than when sold raw. Innscor’s billion-dollar milestone is proof of what can happen when investment, innovation and inclusive value chains come together.
“With a number of the major investments that have been underway over the past few years, having been recently commissioned, the focus will now be directed toward achieving optimal capacity utilisation, unlocking production efficiencies, and securing the requisite targeted financial returns,” said Chairman Chinake.