A NEW breed of innovative and creative young farmers is fast growing in the country. Perhaps driven to till land because of the ready availability of this resource, this sprouting crop of youthful urban farmers is certainly poised to go beyond its forbearers in terms of feeding the country and continent. The young are taking to agriculture as a duck to water, driven by an unbridled passion to stretch the frontiers of a sector that continues to anchor the country’s economy. With the wisdom of hindsight, this army of young farmers which has just started a revolution to put food on the tables of the country’s 14 million people has the benefit of learning from the mistakes and successes of the continent’s ageing farmers. To fuel their efforts is also the integration of cutting edge Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) which has added impetus to the agriculture craze that has gripped the youths. It surely is an exciting time. It is important that this lot of farmers be taken seriously and fully supported. It is a crop of smart farmers which is determined to keep a step ahead of hunger. For now, they have hardly put a step wrong. Whether rearing a few chickens at home in a makeshift fowl run or running heavily mechanised large-scale farm, young farmers seem to understand the importance of taking farming as a business. Dominic Machingura from Harare is one such farmer who has adopted the urban farming concept. Bubbling with joy just after marketing his first harvest of lettuce, Machingura says the reward of embarking on the agriculture journey can be hefty and young people must not be left behind. “My journey has begun; I planted 3 000 heads of lettuce in batches of 1 000 and 2 000 at weekly intervals to extend my supply period,” Machingura said. “Thus far I have harvested the first batch and have managed to recover my input costs. “To all those young people who are looking to start a business I encourage you to look into farming.” But how did it all start? What started off as a curious adventure in 2014 to find out about the National Youth Agri-preneurship Summit that the Zimbabwe Farmers Union (ZFU) stages annually was to nudge Machingura to take a giant leap in the world of agriculture. “After attending the Zimbabwe Youth Agri-preneurship Summit (ZYAS), I was left with only one option, to do farming,” he said. “In just one day and two evenings I was loaded with so much information and motivation. “It became clear to me that someone like me, with no background in farming, could venture into farming as a business on a small piece of land and be profitable.” With hardly any money or a farm in his name, Machingura could not be dissuaded from pursuing his new found dream. He made a plan. “Coming to the issue of funding we were told at the summit to look for alternative sources of funding and not rely solely on the banking system,” he said. “So I went and negotiated with my parents if I could use the portion of land at home and my mom agreed and on top of that, gave me a start-up amount of US$200.” It was from that US$200 that Machingura managed to grow lettuce that would become the envy of many. “The lettuce I planted at home has drawn much interest from many people including neighbours and friends. “I have been marketing and selling to big supermarkets as well as to individuals within my community.” So next time you are shopping for groceries around Zimbabwe’s capital Harare and you bend down to pick a head of fresh crisp lettuce, be grateful to 24-year-old Machingura because it could just be from his small field. And he is not the only youthful farmer supplying various markets with high quality produce. Many other young farmers have joined the agriculture bandwagon.