Ariston made the following statement on its recent financial results:
The general macro-economic environment saw a resurgence in inflation levels and renewed exchange rate volatility. The Group remains hopeful that progressive and consistent policies will be employed to eliminate the current market disparities which have the effect of adversely affecting exporting companies the most.
The trading environment has deteriorated in the current period to 31 March 2022. Disposable incomes continued to be eroded. The agricultural season was characterised by late rains which only commenced in earnest in December 2021. Thereafter the rains were erratic and in total all Estates received less rain in this period than in the prior year’s comparative period. However, whilst the rains were late, the weather conditions were cooler than in the prior comparative period. The cooler temperatures resulted in a positive impact on quality of teas and better nut-set in macadamia. Accordingly, production volumes and quality showed an improvement in the period under review.
Crops under irrigation at Kent were unaffected by the late rains. Dryland planting at Kent Estate could only be completed in late December 2021 as a result of lower and delayed rainfall in current period.
During the period a number of projects were completed using some of the proceeds from the partial disposal of Claremont Orchards Holdings. The projects included the expansion of macadamia orchards and the macadamia drying facility, additional tea making equipment so as to increase the local tea production capacity, and installation of various equipment designed to automate some of the in-field production processes so as to release labour to harvesting processes.
These were successful and have enabled the Group to harvest greater volumes of tea in the current year than historically as the Group continues in its focus to counteract the effects of shortage of labor in Chipinge and Chimanimani.
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For more information: 
Ariston Holdings Ltd
18 Coghlan Road, Harare, Zimbabwe
P.O. Box 4019