Saturday, May 20, 2023
No Result
View All Result
NEWSLETTER
Agric Journal
HARARE WEATHER
  • News
    • All
    • Crops
    • Farm Management
    • Livestock
    • Machinery
    • Markets
    • Technology
    An official from the department of Agricultural Engineering, Mechanisation and Soil Conservation constructing a contour ridge at a field in Nyakudya village in Goromonzi over the weekend.

    Government launches soil and water conservation programme in Mashonaland East

    State of preparedness for 2022/23 cropping season

    State of preparedness for 2022/23 cropping season

    Govt finances production  of local implements

    Govt finances production of local implements

    Editor’s Note

    Editor’s Note

    Another successful season beckons

    Another successful season beckons

    Understanding the goat supply

    Understanding the goat supply

    FOOT and Mouth Disease

    FOOT and Mouth Disease

    Moving towards a sweet potato driven economy

    Moving towards a sweet potato driven economy

    Why horticulture is a low hanging fruit

    Why horticulture is a low hanging fruit

  • Livestock
  • Crops
  • Farm Management
  • Machinery
  • Technology
    Responsible pesticide use on tobacco

    Responsible pesticide use on tobacco

    Trending Tags

  • Markets
    • All
    • Market Analysis
    • Successful Marketing
    Editor’s Note

    Editor’s Note

    Moving towards a sweet potato driven economy

    Moving towards a sweet potato driven economy

    Leveraging Zimbabwe mercantile exchange for soya bean trading

    Leveraging Zimbabwe mercantile exchange for soya bean trading

    Inputs suppliers discard Govt directive on prices, manipulate exchange rate

    Inputs suppliers discard Govt directive on prices, manipulate exchange rate

    Tobacco contract farming: The real deal

    Tobacco contract farming: The real deal

    Tobacco: Major cash crop and foreign currency earner

    Tobacco: Major cash crop and foreign currency earner

    Crock of gold in garlic farming

    Crock of gold in garlic farming

    Are contract arrangements fair for farmers?

    Innovativeness can reduce seed production costs

    Innovativeness can reduce seed production costs

  • Weather

    Trending Tags

  • News
    • All
    • Crops
    • Farm Management
    • Livestock
    • Machinery
    • Markets
    • Technology
    An official from the department of Agricultural Engineering, Mechanisation and Soil Conservation constructing a contour ridge at a field in Nyakudya village in Goromonzi over the weekend.

    Government launches soil and water conservation programme in Mashonaland East

    State of preparedness for 2022/23 cropping season

    State of preparedness for 2022/23 cropping season

    Govt finances production  of local implements

    Govt finances production of local implements

    Editor’s Note

    Editor’s Note

    Another successful season beckons

    Another successful season beckons

    Understanding the goat supply

    Understanding the goat supply

    FOOT and Mouth Disease

    FOOT and Mouth Disease

    Moving towards a sweet potato driven economy

    Moving towards a sweet potato driven economy

    Why horticulture is a low hanging fruit

    Why horticulture is a low hanging fruit

  • Livestock
  • Crops
  • Farm Management
  • Machinery
  • Technology
    Responsible pesticide use on tobacco

    Responsible pesticide use on tobacco

    Trending Tags

  • Markets
    • All
    • Market Analysis
    • Successful Marketing
    Editor’s Note

    Editor’s Note

    Moving towards a sweet potato driven economy

    Moving towards a sweet potato driven economy

    Leveraging Zimbabwe mercantile exchange for soya bean trading

    Leveraging Zimbabwe mercantile exchange for soya bean trading

    Inputs suppliers discard Govt directive on prices, manipulate exchange rate

    Inputs suppliers discard Govt directive on prices, manipulate exchange rate

    Tobacco contract farming: The real deal

    Tobacco contract farming: The real deal

    Tobacco: Major cash crop and foreign currency earner

    Tobacco: Major cash crop and foreign currency earner

    Crock of gold in garlic farming

    Crock of gold in garlic farming

    Are contract arrangements fair for farmers?

    Innovativeness can reduce seed production costs

    Innovativeness can reduce seed production costs

  • Weather

    Trending Tags

No Result
View All Result
Agric Journal
No Result
View All Result
Home News Crops

Tobacco contract farming: The real deal

by admin
March 1, 2022
in Crops, Farm Management, Markets, Successful Marketing
0 0
0
Tobacco contract farming: The real deal
0
SHARES
370
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

CONTRACT farming has fast become the bedrock of Zimbabwe’s tobacco sector, a Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) top official recently observed.
Farmers on the one hand, hail contractors for giving them access to capital and inputs, which is enabling them to equip their farms and timeously transplant their irrigated crop, as each season kicks off.
This comes as the Government recently approved the Tobacco Value Chain Transformation Plan to grow the sub-sector to a US$5 billion industry by 2025.
The drive behind the plan is to create opportunities aimed at changing outcomes for all stakeholders in the value chain.
It is envisioned that the plan would not only better the livelihoods of farmers and their families, but will also boost the economy, localise funding and significantly contribute towards the realisation of national Vision 2030.
In an interview in Harare recently, TIMB chief executive officer, Mr Meanwhile Gudu, said contractors added value, indicating that the Government was working on replicating the contract model across other crops.
“Contract farming is key to the success of the tobacco industry in Zimbabwe. Without contract farming there is no tobacco to talk about,” said Mr Gudu.
He said due mainly to self-funding, the country recorded its lowest output of 48 million kilogrammes in 2008.
“Contractors came on board, and we managed to recover to a record 262 million kilogrammes in 2019,” Mr Gudu said.
Because tobacco grown under contract adheres to sustainability issues, global trends are shifting towards contract farming. Nonetheless, the issue of funding has always been thorny, particularly where beneficiaries of the post-2000 Land Reform Programme are concerned.
Newly resettled farmers found themselves with large swathes of land – the crucial means of production that was envisaged to better their livelihoods. But without resources to take them off the ground in a meaningful way, they remained stark.
Banks closed their doors on them owing to lack of collateral, pointing out that their 99-year leases were not bankable. With the Government unable to punch above its weight, doing only what it could to support the resettled farmers, opportunities were to be sought elsewhere.
Seeing the yawning gap, resource rich contractors came in to fill it, and complement the Government’s efforts by providing financial and technical support to farmers as well as create a ready market for their crop.
Dr Howard Marowa (55), a farmer from Mashonaland West Province, said that contract farming was a game changer for him, as it came when he was financially hamstrung.
It has helped him in equipping his two farms – Farm 4 in Chitomborwizi (90 hectares), Makonde District, and the 450ha Lone Calf Plot 4 in Mutorashanga, which he acquired during the land reform programme in 2001, as well as a 250ha farm he is leasing under a partnership.
“Contract farming helped me in more than one way. I was probably one of the first farmers to get equipment under contract with Tian Ze,” Dr Marowa, a veterinary surgeon, said.
“Each year, the contractor would give us interest-free capital to buy equipment and inputs, which helped us to grow as farmers.
“I started with one centre pivot in 2009, and the following year, I was given money to buy another one. To date I have about 12 centre pivots (at Farm 4), which are helping me not only in tobacco farming, but also in wheat, soya beans and maize cultivation.”
When Dr Marowa joined contract farming in 2009, he was growing 40ha of tobacco. Due to the support he got, and continues to get from Tian Ze, each year he puts 400ha under wheat, 300ha under maize, with tobacco taking up 200ha.
Since his combined capacity is 270ha, with only 180ha of Lone Calf Plot 4 being arable, Dr Marowa leases about 630ha from other farmers, including the 250ha Banket farm.
With lateral pipes, which were difficult to use, now a thing of the past, he owns 25 centre pivots, 24 tractors and a combine harvester, among other farming equipment, spread across his farms, courtesy of contract farming.
Dr Marowa said contract farming was a good starting point, urging patience and discipline, since farming profits are not “so dramatic”.

Recommended

Why horticulture is a low hanging fruit

Why horticulture is a low hanging fruit

7 months ago
Ways of keeping livestock safe in severe weather conditions

Ways of keeping livestock safe in severe weather conditions

1 year ago

Popular News

    Connect with us

    Category

    • Crops
    • Farm Management
    • Livestock
    • Machinery
    • Market Analysis
    • Markets
    • News
    • Successful Marketing
    • Technology
    • Uncategorized

    Contact Us

    Herald House
    Cnr George Silundika & Sam Nujoma
    Harare

    Phone: +263 024 795771

    Have A Feedback?

    Tell us what you think of AgricJournal -- we welcome both positive and negative comments. Have any problems using the site? Questions?

    • About
    • Advertise
    • Careers
    • Contact

    © 2022 Agriculture Journal. All Rights Reserved. Web Design By Web Entangled - Zimbabwe

    No Result
    View All Result
    • Home
    • Crops
    • Livestock
    • News
    • Farm Management
    • Machinery
    • Markets
    • Commodity Prices
    • Newswire
    • Market Analysis
    • Successful Marketing
    • Current Conditions
    • Weather
    • Weather News
    • Technology
    • Severe Weather
    • Food

    © 2022 Agriculture Journal. All Rights Reserved. Web Design By Web Entangled - Zimbabwe

    Login to your account below

    Forgotten Password? Sign Up

    Fill the forms bellow to register

    All fields are required. Log In

    Retrieve your password

    Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

    Log In