The Sunday News
Ngonidzashe Chiutsi Farming Correspondent
THE Zimbabwe Commercial Farmers Union (ZCFU) says there is a need for Government to revive the cattle restocking programme so as to increase the country’s national herd.ZCFU president, Mr Wonder Chabikwa, said the rollout of the programme was essential especially in the Matabeleland region where the cattle population has over the past decade-and-a-half been on the decline due to recurrent droughts and an upsurge in diseases.
He said Matabeleland region was a prime cattle rearing area of which most of its grazing land was being underutilised owing to a depleted herd.
“Most of the grazing land in Matabeleland is being made to go to waste due to low stocking rate. It’s unfortunate farmers can’t restock on their own due to a lack of financial resources,” Mr Chabikwa said.
He said previously, the Government used to facilitate a well orchestrated programme to boost the national herd.
“The Government had a programme that used to be administered by the Cold Storage Company (CSC) to boost the national herd. It used to run what was called the grazer schemes.
“Through this scheme, CSC identified farmers and allocated them heifers with its own branding and when the heifer calved the company would pass it on to another farmer and the process would go on and on like that,” said the official.
The CSC used to play a leading role in the processing and marketing of Zimbabwe’s beef since its inception in 1937.
However, it has fallen on hard times since 2000 owing to a number of challenges, chief among being the underutilisation, failure to raise adequate working capital, cattle disease outbreaks, decline in commercial herd, huge foreign debt, high staff turnover and an aged transport fleet.
At its peak CSC reared 25 000 cattle but reports say it has less than 1 000 cattle.
Reports also say in the 90s more than 230 000 cattle were in the hands of outgrower farmers.
It is reported that the company is facing debts of up to $22 million and has a salary backlog running into millions of dollars.
Former ZCFU Matabeleland North chairperson, Mrs Irene Maphenduka, told Sunday Business that Government should render support to the livestock farmers just like the efforts it was putting to assist those involved in crop production.
“The tobacco and maize farmers get Government assistance and we would like that programme also be rolled out to us livestock farmers so that we can also be productive,” said Mrs Maphenduka.
The region has an estimated total of 556 619 cattle contributing about 10 percent to the national herd.
