ARDA revives Norton fruit processing plant after four-year closure

The Agricultural and Rural Development Authority (ARDA) has officially reopened the Best Fruit Processors (BFP) plant in Norton, marking a major boost for value addition and rural economic transformation.

The facility, which had been idle for four years, has been fully refurbished and is now a key pillar of ARDA’s strategy to stimulate rural development by providing guaranteed markets for smallholder farmers.

The modernised plant has the capacity to process 100,000 kilogrammes of tomatoes per day into paste, or an equivalent volume of fresh fruit into pulp concentrate.

The revival is expected to provide a reliable off-take arrangement for Village Business Units (VBUs) and small-scale farmers across Zimbabwe’s eight farming provinces, helping to curb post-harvest losses while creating a stable income stream for rural producers.

“This is not just about reopening a factory; it is about activating an entire ecosystem.

“By providing a guaranteed market for processing-grade produce, we are de-risking farming, encouraging higher-value crop cultivation, and ensuring that the wealth created in rural areas is retained and multiplied there. This plant is a direct catalyst for the agro-industrialisation envisioned in our national development agenda,” said ARDA’s director for commercial operations.

By shifting from the sale of raw tomatoes and fruit to the production of shelf-stable pastes and concentrates, ARDA aims to retain more value locally, reduce reliance on imports, and create skilled employment in the agro-processing sector.

The Norton plant will primarily source raw materials from ARDA’s network of VBUs and smallholder farmers, establishing an integrated closed-loop production model in which rural agricultural output feeds directly into industrial processing.

The model is expected to stimulate rural economies, provide more consistent pricing for farmers, and supply both domestic and regional markets with high-quality, locally manufactured food products.