Zimbabwean Grocery and Food Shopping in the UK: Where to Buy Sadza, Matemba, Lacto, and Other Home Foods

For Zimbabweans in the UK, recreating the taste of home — a proper sadza with matemba, a cup of Mazoe, or Cerevita for the kids in the morning — is both a comfort and a cultural necessity. The good news is that access to authentic Zimbabwean groceries in the UK has expanded significantly, with several dedicated online retailers now offering nationwide delivery. **Online Zimbabwean Food Retailers in the UK** **Mars Foods (marsfoods.co.uk)** markets itself as a one-stop shop for Zimbabwean and African groceries, stocking items including mealie meal, Mazoe Orange Crush (2 litre), dried kapenta (matemba), Cerevita in multiple flavours at £8.00, Aromat Seasoning 75g at £2.00, Nestle Cremora 1kg at £8.00, chakalaka, and groundnut butter. They offer UK-wide delivery and position themselves around affordability and freshness. **Hippo Foods (hippofoods.co.uk)** focuses on Zimbabwean and Southern African foods and offers free delivery on orders over £60. Their range includes Mugaiwa Roller Meal 5kg at £9.99, pearl millet (mhunga) at £3.60 per kg, finger millet (zviyo) from £3.60, white maize kernels at £3.50, sugar beans at £3.50, samp (manhuchu) at £3.00, peanuts (nzungu), Mazoe, and Spar-letta drinks. Delivery is quoted at up to four working days. **GazMart (gazmart.co.uk)** has been operating since 2018 and focuses specifically on Zimbabwean home foods, stocking items such as Mazoe, bellied pots, and traditional snacks. Their stated aim is to make home foods accessible without charging a premium. **Zim Foods (zimfoods.co.uk)**, based in Birmingham, carries a broad range of Southern African brands alongside Zimbabwean staples. Their stock includes Lobels biscuits (Lemon Creams, Vanilla Creams, Custard Creams, Bermuda Creams) from £1.25 to £1.70, Cerevita wholesale boxes at £170–£180 per 24-pack, Family Peanut Butter (dovi) at £2.00 sale price, Knorrox stock cubes, Rajah curry powders, Moringa tea, Joko Tea, All Gold Tomato Sauce, and Nola mayonnaise. They also offer a buy-now-pay-later option. **Mwanaka Fresh Farm Foods and Butchery (mwanakafarmshop.com)** is based at 744 Hertford Road, Enfield, London (EN3 6PR) and operates as a butchery with a particular focus on Zimbabwean and Southern African meat products. They stock boerewors in original and garlic flavours at £1kg, chakalaka beef boerewors, pork trotters, mixed cuts, and beef chuck and blade steak. Alongside the meat, they carry grocery lines including Mwanaka-brand refined maize meal, roller maize meal, pearl millet, organic sorghum, and finger millet in 5kg bags, plus Mrs H.S. Balls chakalaka chutney, Mazoe Blackberry, and Rajah curry powder. They offer next-day delivery for orders placed before 12pm, with orders after 12pm Thursday delivered the following Tuesday. Phone: 01992 765 668. **ZimGroceries (zimgroceries.co.uk)** operates differently — it is designed for diaspora members who want to send groceries to family in Zimbabwe rather than receive them in the UK. They source directly from Zimbabwe, offer gift hampers, and deliver within Harare and surrounding areas within three to five business days, with free delivery on orders over $100. This is a useful option for those who want to stock a relative's kitchen back home rather than ship goods across. **What You Can Typically Find** Across these retailers, the following items are commonly available in the UK: - Mealie meal and roller meal (various brands, 2kg and 5kg bags) - Matemba / dried kapenta / dried fish - Cerevita (original, banana, chocolate malt, corn and wheat flavours) - Mazoe (Orange Crush, Blackberry) - Lacto products and Cremora - Lobels biscuits and Charhons biscuits - Aromat, Knorrox, and Rajah spices - Groundnut butter / dovi - Boerewors and traditional meat cuts - Chakalaka - Sorghum, mhunga, zviyo, and traditional grains - Moringa, zumbani, and Makoni tea - Maputi and traditional snacks **African and International Food Sections in UK Supermarkets** Beyond specialist online shops, large supermarkets in cities with significant African communities — particularly Woolwich, Peckham, Lewisham, Wembley, and parts of Birmingham and Manchester — often stock maize meal, dried fish, peanut butter, and some Southern African condiments. African and Caribbean food shops in these areas frequently carry items not available on mainstream shelves. It is worth checking local markets and international food stores, as availability varies by city and neighbourhood. **Bringing Food from Zimbabwe** Some members of the diaspora prefer to bring specific items when travelling from Zimbabwe or ask visiting relatives to pack them. Items commonly brought back include traditional dried vegetables (muriwo unofushwa), home-roasted groundnuts, matemba, maheu, and specific biscuits or snacks that taste different from UK versions — as many returnees note, the flavour profiles of products like Mazoe and Aromat can vary between locally sourced and export versions. For guidance on what can legally be brought into the UK, check HMRC rules on food imports, particularly regarding meat and dairy products, which face stricter controls. **Practical Tips** - Buying in bulk from wholesale listings (such as Cerevita cases from Zim Foods) reduces the per-unit cost significantly. - Sign up for mailing lists from these retailers, as seasonal sales and promotions are common. - Mwanaka in Enfield is accessible for London-based Zimbabweans who prefer to shop in person rather than wait for delivery. - For sending groceries to family in Zimbabwe, ZimGroceries removes the logistics burden of international parcels entirely.