No, this is not a picture of tractors heading for Zimbabwe - ZimFact
Ngoni Mhuruyengwe
March 6, 2021
CLAIM: An image of tractors on a ship shows John Deere tractors destined for Zimbabwe
SOURCE: Tweet by the “Zanu PF Youth League UK & EU” account
VERDICT: False
An image has circulated on social media, showing John Deere tractors on a trawler near a dock. Tweets by the Zanu PF Youth League UK & EU and by businessman Mutumwa Mawere claimed that the picture showed tractors at tthe Durban port, heading for Zimbabwe. The picture was also shared by other social media users, with similar claims.
This is misleading.
The picture, in fact, shows John Deere tractors being transported in Mannheim, Germany. A reverse image search of the picture shows that it has been posted on many websites before. It was posted on 24 August 2020 by a German company, Kotschenreuther Forst-& Landtechnik, a German dealer for John Deere tractors, with the caption: “New batch of John Deere tractors, heading to us by ship”.
How can you tell that a picture is used wrongly?
To check the source of a picture, you can use reverse image search on either your computer or the mobile phone. On a computer, you can right-click on the image, and it gives you the option to “search Google for image”. You can also free mobile phone apps, such as Veracity, the Google app, or ImageSearch, to upload the picture and let the app search the internet for the image.
Conclusion
Claims that this picture shows tractors at Durban being shipped to Zimbabwe is false. While Zimbabwe does have a contract with John Deere for the supply of agricultural equipment, the picture has nothing to do with Zimbabwe. A reverse image search shows that the image was taken in Germany.
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