The Sunday News
Judith Phiri, Business Reporter
THE Association of Cotton Value Adders of Zimbabwe (ACVAZ) has said there is a need to re-capacitate the Cotton Research Institute so that the country can continue to produce cotton varieties that match climate change effects.
Cotton production in the country is largely practiced by smallholder farmers with an average of one hectare for every farmer. Production is mainly done in averagely dry parts of the country with considerably high temperatures and rainfall amounts averaging 500mm per annum. In an interview, ACVAZ board member, Mr Tararama Gutu said the institution was critical to the success of the cotton value chain in the country.
“We need it to be re-capacitated so that we can continue to produce varieties that match climate change effects. The institute is always conducting research on new varieties of cotton, so that as the climate conditions change, the seed varieties also change to achieve maximum yield for the farmers,” said Mr Gutu.
He said the success of the institution would then ensure that it produces planting seeds suitable for each growing region and planting seeds that can yield different attributes for the benefit of the farmers. Mr Gutu said the country’s cotton spinning industry needs strong long and white cotton fibre whereas the oil expressers were in need of big cotton seeds that are high in oil content.
“The farmers want a cotton planting seed that has robust germination properties, probably now the farmers want a variety with good yields and short season. So, the institute has to put all that together and establish varieties that meet everyone’s needs. More technically, the farmer wants affordable seed and a seed that is not easily attacked by pests, because pesticides are expensive.”
Mr Gutu said the institute should run experiments and grow new varieties before they commercialise them and then recommend growing conditions, while trials could be done at the institute or on farms in different locations.
As a Government research institution, the Cotton Research Institute (CRI) is situated in Kadoma and falls under the Crops Research Division of the Department of Research and Specialist Services in the Ministry Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development.
Meanwhile, the country’s cotton production is expected to more than double this year after most cotton-growing regions across the country received good rains during the farming season. The output of raw cotton fibre, one of Zimbabwe’s largest agricultural commodities, is roughly expected to reach 100 000 tonnes, well above the 48 000 tonnes for the previous season.
The Cotton Company of Zimbabwe which administers the Government’s inputs scheme and accounts for 85 percent of national production earlier this month said this would be the highest production in two years after back-to-back droughts in some cotton-growing areas hit production of the crop grown by more 350 000 farmers.
Zimbabwe’s cotton season runs in two phases, including the growing season from September to December, and harvesting and sales period from May to August. This year, the lowest grade (D) will fetch US$0,40 per kg while the premium grade (A) will be sold at US$0,46 per kg. Farmers will be paid 85 percent in US dollars and the remainder in local currency at the official interbank rate.
