The ManicaPost
Cletus Mushanawani News Editor
AGRISEEDS sales and marketing country director, Mr Ivan Craig, has called for value addition of all agricultural produce for farmers to maximise on their profits.
Speaking at Chief Makumbe-elect, Mr Shepherd Chengeta-Ngundu’s homestead in Buhera where the company held a field day last Friday, Mr Craig, said farmers stand to benefit from their sweat if they take value addition seriously.
“We should all move away from traditional farming practices. Farming is a serious venture with massive returns if taken seriously. We should not continue wallowing in abject poverty when we have a lot at our disposal. Middlemen are smiling all the way to the bank after ripping off farmers.
“Livestock producers have a lot to benefit from their livestock if they add value to them. They can fatten their cattle. After fattening them, they can slaughter on their own and sell fresh meat or dry some of the meat which they will repackage as biltong. A single beast can rake in more than $3 000 if it is value added,” said Mr Craig.
On maize production, Mr Craig, said: “There are a lot of benefits realised from maize production. We should not wait for middlemen to come here and buy our grain. Some are bringing in cheap stuff like soap and barter trade with farmers. The same people are realising profits almost 10-fold from what they would have used to get the grain from farmers especially in rural areas.
They are adding value to your grain that you would have sold for a song through products like maputi and mhandire. You can imagine how many sachets of maputi or mhandire are being realised from your 50kgs of maize. It is no longer business as usual in farming. Let us maximise in everything that we do,” he said.
He said Agriseeds was embarking on educational demonstrations in partnership with Agritex.
“Agriseeds is also embarking on educational demonstrations, helping all farmers throughout the country. We are working in partnership with Agritex in this project because we want to change farmers’ mindsets and ensure maximum production.
“We are making efforts to ensure that farmers know that they can achieve their maximum potential through the use of correct agronomical practices. What has happened here in Buhera is something which we should all applaud because farmers need to know that not every crop is suitable for every ecological region,” he said.
Mr Chengeta-Ngundu has three hectares under a thriving maize crop and is expecting a bumper harvest despite the dry conditions associated with Buhera.
He planted Agriseed’s early medium maturity variety, ZAP 61 which matures after between 125 and 135 days depending with the area where it would have been planted.
Speaking at the field day, Mr Chengeta-Ngundu, said he was inspired by his mother to grow the seed variety after realising the high yields she had from her plot.
“It was my mother who encouraged me to try this seed variety and the results are there for everyone to see. As farmers, we should work closely with our agronomists because we are there to give the hunger tag a lethal blow here in Buhera.
We cannot continue to be perennial beggars yet we have the land. Let us all embrace the new knowledge being imparted to us by agronomists and other development partners.
“Buhera is one of the areas known for hunger and if we work on this together this could relive Government from financial constraints as they always support us with food handouts.
“We are very lucky indeed because Agriseeds has decided to host a field day here and educate us more. I think everyone here can see that ZAP 61 performed well here in Buhera. I hope everyone here in Buhera will learn from this field day and help to transform lives,” he said.
Speaking at the same occasion, Chief Nerutanga’s representative and prominent Mutare lawyer, Mr Misheck Mugadza, said: “We are all here to learn and we should embrace all that is being imparted to us.
We should move away from some of our old habits of sticking to the same seed varieties that we have been growing since time immemorial. We should embrace new hybrids because they are being produced with the changing weather patterns in mind.
“As traditional leaders we are also there to lead by example and we want to salute Mr Chengeta-Ngundu for leading from the front. We all have a role to play to ensure food security in this country.”, based on a factual track record,” said the organisation in a statement.
