Supply chain bottlenecks and farmer profitability: A dynamic capabilities and value chain analysis of Zimbabwean horticulture

Abstract

Purpose. Horticultural farmers in Mashonaland East Province, Zimbabwe, operate within a supply chain widely acknowledged as inefficient, yet prior research has treated individual bottlenecks such as transport, storage, or market access as isolated problems. This study addresses that gap by providing a holistic, context-specific analysis of how interrelated supply chain failures jointly undermine farmer profitability. Methodology. A qualitative multiple-case study design was adopted, in which 20 purposively selected farmers, each treated as an individual case, were interviewed using semi-structured protocols. Primary data were triangulated with a systematic review of 34 policy and grey literature documents. Interview transcripts were thematically analysed in NVivo 12 following Braun and Clarke's six-phase method, guided jointly by Dynamic Capabilities Theory (DCT) and Value Chain Analysis (VCA). Results. The analysis identifies six interlocking constraints: unreliable transportation networks, near-total absence of cold storage, high and volatile operational costs, severe market information asymmetry, intensifying climate change impacts, and limited adoption of modern farming technology, that reinforce one another rather than operating independently. Together they form a self-perpetuating cycle that erodes profit margins and steadily depletes farmers' capacity to adapt. Theoretical contribution. The study shows that combining dynamic capabilities theory with value chain analysis yields more explanatory power than either framework alone: VCA identifies precisely where value is lost along the chain, while DCT clarifies why farmers lack the sensing, seizing, and reconfiguring capacity to respond, revealing how meso-level systemic failures constrain micro-level adaptability and profitability. Practical implications. For policymakers, the findings support coordinated investment in rural infrastructure, decentralised cold storage, and digital market platforms rather than single-sector interventions. For practitioners and extension services, they point to the need for climate-smart training and market-literacy programs delivered together, not separately. For rural communities, addressing these constraints has direct implications for household income stability, reduced postharvest waste, and food security. The study also offers development agencies a diagnostic framework for identifying which combinations of constraints most urgently require simultaneous, rather than sequential, intervention. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): SDG 1: No poverty; SDG 2: Zero hunger; SDG 8: Decent work and economic growth; SDG 9: Industry, innovation and infrastructure; SDG 12: Responsible consumption and production; SDG 13: Climate action