c alif or n bev eg s lt d. download e-copies - www

HEAD OFFICE: Plot No. 76, Katima Mulilo Road, Olympia Lusaka Zambia

T: 0971 150 150, 0957 549 425, 096 9500 065E: [email protected], [email protected]

Borehole PumpsSolar Pumps

Booster PumpsTank And Tank stands

Chlorination SystemBorehole testing

irrigation SystemInstallation/Mantenance

House PlumbingBoreHole Drilling, 4.5”,5”,6”,8”,12”Re-Deepening FlushingPump Installation

Proudly Zambian

austrumwater services

K10 DOWNLOAD E-COPIES - WWW.AGRICOOPNEWSPAPER.COM

www.agricoopnewspaper .com Agricoopnews+260 955 791 676Agricoop Newspaper agricoopnews

FORAGE SEED GROWERS

IN KASAMA REAPING THE

REWARDSStory on page 7

Story on page 14

Story on page 14

Story on page

MORE RESEARCH FOR THE PERFECT BEAN!

WATER SHORTAGE DISTURB AVOCADO FARMERS

Farmers News, all Seasons.

Californian Beverages Ltd.

JUNE 2021 VOLUME 145 Chicken and Veggie Wrap

AGRI-COOP NEWSPAPER, JUNE 2021 | VOLUME 146

agricoopnewsAgricoopnews0955 791 676www.agricoopnewspaper.com Agricoop Newspaper

2 ADVERTISEMENT

Plot No. 1694, Lumumba Road, Near Lumumba /Kalambo Traffic Lights Lusaka. Zambia, Tel: 021 1355 458 Mobile: +260 969914558, +260 975439651, 0964 172120, 0972 904505

Email: [email protected], [email protected].

A member of CropLifeZAMBIA

�.me�zcvcl

ZAMBIAN CROP & VETERINARY CARE LTD

www.zcvcl.org

“Connecting Farmers To Better Platform For Growth”

3

Talking Vegetables with Seedco

Eric K Mwenda (Commonly known as Mr. To-mato, The Guru) is Head of Veg-etable Business Unit at Seedco Zambia.If your desire is to grow Profitable Vegetables please do not hesitate to contact him on:

Mobile+260-966-784515Email: eric.mwenda@seedco-

group.comWatch him on ABNTV every Wednesday Top star channel

107Facebook:Eric K Mwenda

Mr Tomato



How to Grow Regent Onion F1

WHEN it comes to choos-ing the right variety of the seed to plant

most farmers are faced with a challenge due to the availability of diverse seed varieties on the market.

And what is very important for the farmer is to get hold of the seed variety that will yield the right quantities as well as be able to with stand the variety hash weather conditions that may arise during the growing season of that particular crop.

The right type of seed is devel-oped and bred after undergoing

a thorough market-oriented research by that particular seed company.

And SeedCo is the seed company that has put immense invest-ment into developing certified seeds. These certified seeds have the greater ability to produce higher yields and they also have good agronomic traits such as drought and disease tolerance.

SeedCo Vegetables continues to work towards providing quality seed varieties aimed at improv-ing both Small and Commercial farmer’s growing experience and that means sustainability for generation to generation.

One of the seeds that SeedCo has developed in their vegetable seeds line of businessis the

REGENT ONION F1. WHY SHOULD FARMERS PLANT REGENT ONION F1? • Good disease tolerance.

It has strong tolerance to downy mildew which is one of the diseases cutting the farmers’ yield considerably.

• It is a mid-early varietyma-turing after 90-110 days producing Yellow slightly flattened globe. This is the Onion giving the farmer return of investment after only 3 months from plant-ing. With good shelf life of more than 5 months, the farmer is assured of selling at a good price especially when there is a shortage of the commodity starting February when all local onion gets finished from the markets.

• Onion is one sleeping giant in the economy of Crop Farming in Zambia because the INPUT COSTS are very low, but the OUTPUT is rather very high. Very few

farmers are growing Onion because most farmers are into other crops. With Hybrid Onions reducing the time to harvest it means the farmers can have 2 good Plantings per year (The only time we should not have this white onion in the field is when it is raining).

• It has excellent firmness and can be stored for more than five months.

• 90-120MT per Ha (9000-12,000Pockets by 10kg bags) depending on your management and good agronomic practices.

• The farmers will have a strong backing from Seed-Co Agronomists dotted across the major growing areas in the country (Qual-ity Seed + Support=Better Income for the farmer).

ADVISE TO THE FARMER THIS MONTH• Do not jump into con-

clusions to plant a crop because you have seen how profitable it is or “Bashi Tumelo” said it is a good crop to grow.Every

time you get advice or hear something new remember to do due diligence to get all facts there is and ensure that YOU GET THE RIGHT INFORMATION FROM THE RIGHT SOURCES otherwise you will be growing from year to year without getting anywhere.

• You will then finally retire from farming meanwhile your neighbor is investing more into farming because they got the right knowl-edge at the right time from the right sources.

• Do not Plant because there is a shortage, but Plant On-ion because you are build-ing a business for tomorrow and your next generation.

• Thinking of Planting Onion this season get to your nearest SeedCo outlet and start the journey which can take you to the next level.

SEEDCO VEGETABLES'STOMATO HYBRID

@seedcovegetables.

SeedCoVegetables ensures the best quality seed for agreat farming experience. It starts with the right seed.

ADVERTISEMENT

Plot No: 7246 Sunrise House off Lumba road, Corner of Mukatasha and KachidzaCell: 0955 784 766, 0979 491962

Email: [email protected] WORK SUITS

SACK SEWING MACHINE

SAFETY SHOESPOLYESTER COTTON

Agririte�EnterprisesA



To page 5

4

Dr Simfunkwe posing with the offspringof the TN Tempo boar via Artificial insemination

Francisco Kasuba in a Guilt Houseat ZPG Topigs Norsvin productonunity in chisamba

5

Plot 1636 Malambo Road Lusaka,Tel:+260 762626876 Email:[email protected]

+260 762626876

Luminous Baeries

and Inverters

Cheers Solar Pumps

Hager MCBs and DB Boxes

Crabtree PVC Range

Victron MulPlus II

Victron Charge Controllers

Dyness Baeries

Longi Solar Panels

Grundfos RSI Drives



From page 8

Poor Sanitation, a Hindrance to Good NutritionBy Royda Chongo

Good nutrition is not just about how much food is avail-able to consume, but rather about

enduring right nutrition. The first 1,000 days from pregnancy through to a child’s second birthday is the most critical mo-ment where a child’s nourish-ment determines the child’s destiny. The three main underlying causes of under nutrition are-unsuitable or insufficient food intake, poor care practices and disease. All these are directly or indirectly related to inadequate access to water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) services.Access to safe water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) is a funda-mental determinant of health and nutrition. Zambia has made good progress in improving ac-cess to WASH services with over half of the population now able to access basic sanitation. However, a large number of the population is still practicing Open Defecation and water, sanitation and hand washing facilities are still inadequate in most health care facilities and schools. “A quarter of all stunting is at-tributed to episodes of diarrhea during the first 2 years of life,” says Mr. MacDonald Mulongwe who is Scaling up Nutrition Technical Assistance (SUN TA) Northern region manager. Mr. Mulongwe explained that the sun movement has taken action on better integration of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene practices and nutrition to help reduce stunting in the country. “As SUN TA, we are working in line with the presidential directive which states that all provinces should support government in creating Open Defecation Chiefdoms through-out the country,” lamented Mr. Mulongwe. And to compliment this action, Mr. Mulongwe says SUN TA has allocated funds to construct a total of 26 new water points in form of boreholes and reha-bilitate another 26 to be divided amongthe two implementing dis-tricts which are Ndola and Kitwe respectively. He added that open defecation pollutes the environment and causes health problems and diseases leading to high child mortality, poor nutrition and poverty. He said ending open defecation is an indicator be-ing used to measure progress towards ending stunting among children. Mr. Mulongwe was speaking during the just ended copperbelt provincial Open Defecation task force orientation meeting in Ndola. And speaking during the same event, Community-led total sani-tation (CLTs) National Coordina-tor Leonard Mukosha said 1,800 children die every 30 seconds world over due to diarrheal diseases. “Proper sanitation and hygiene and safe drinking water can re-duce under nutrition and stunt-ing in children by preventing diarrheal and parasitic diseases which causes damage to the in-

testinal development,” explained Mr. Mukosha. He added that diarrhea is the second leading cause of death globally in children under the age of five years and for infants particularly under 6 months of age, diarrhea can cause perma-nent damage to the intestinal development hence reducing a child’s ability to absorb food and nutrients. “So reduction of diarrheal diseases through WASH sensi-tiveinterventions can prevent at least 860,000 child deaths per year caused by under nutrition,” lamented Mr. Mukusha. He noted that it is for this reason that open defecation in rural and peri urban communities need to be eliminated as it contributes to a huge percentage of stunting. “People in these rural communi-ties use whatever open spaces

that seem convenient as bath-rooms or toilets,” Mr. Mukosha narrated worriedly. He has since urged the open defecation pro-vincial task force which will be chaired by the Provincial Local Government officer to go flat out in ensuring that all the commu-nities in the target districts attain an open defecation free status within the stipulated time frame. The scaling up Nutrition (SUN) program is a cross ministry and multi donor program to reduce stunting in Zambia. The Food and Nutrition Commission (NFNC) implements SUN as part of the Government of the Republic of Zambia 1,000 Most Critical Days Program. It uses various sensitive interventions through Agriculture, Water, sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), health and education to mention a few.

TRALARD TRANSFORMING LIVES OF FARMERS IN MUNGWI DISTRICT

By SUSAN TUMBO

THE Agriculture sector is one of the major contributors to Zam-bia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The

sector has received attention from both government and pri-vate players and has continued to record progress at various levels. This is evident through the various programs which are being implemented in the country.However, despite the strides made so far, the sector is faced with a number of challenges due to climate change as some parts of the country have been hit with disasters such as droughts and floods. In an effort to address such plights, government and its cooperation partners have em-barked on awareness programs focused on educating and sensi-tizing farmers in the country on conservation farming practices that can withstand the changing climate patterns. As a means of addressing these challenges, farmers are being encouraged to venture into livestock rearing and climate resilient farming. Recently, government through the Ministry of National Devel-opment Planning is implement-ing the Transforming Landscapes for Resilience and Develop-ment (TRALARD), a programme supported by the World Bank. Its aim is to improve natural resources management in the selected districts to support sustainable livelihoods and provide immediate and effec-tive response in an event of an eligible crisis or emergency.The programme is a five year project valued at $100,000. Its goal is to help vulnerable communities overcome climate change impacts and build their resilience to ensure increase in food security and livelihoods by generating income activities. And Northern Province is among one of the beneficiary provinces of the TRALARD-which will support resilience in infrastructure, agriculture, small

Moses Pinyolo checking on the vegetable nursery.

livestock(goats,chickens and pigs), aquaculture, water, natural resources and climate informa-tion services. It is being imple-mented in five districts which include;Nsama, Mpulungu, Chilubi, Mbala and Mungwi.With a population of 112,977 people, Mungwi district is among one of the districts in Northern Province which is benefiting from the programme interven-tions. The district is mostly known for farming and is prone to calamities such as floods, droughts and changing tem-peratures. It is for this reason, famers are being empowered with enterprises which is focus-ing on production, marketing or processing of which they can consume and sell the remaining products to raise money that will make them purchase what they may need during misfortune period. The TRALARD project is work-ing with the community in five wards of the district at the mo-ment but intends to expand to other wards later so that it can benefit the entire district.The project has involved the training of beneficiaries who are in cooperatives, individuals and service providers on how well to grow and manage their crops, animals, their businesses, and nutritional benefits of the crops they grow.Most importantly the aspect of gender equality in agribusiness as well as the importance of

good environmental manage-ment while conducting business has not been left out.Once these groups are well equipped with various knowl-edge and skills, they will be able to share the knowledge with col-leagues. In addition to this, the farmers will make use of skills they will be empowered with by the project; hence the district will see a reduction in poverty levels among households as well as contributing to the food security of the country.Mungwi Project Coordina-tor, Cornelius Yanda said the TRALARD project has come at the right timewhen there is need of climate change education among farmers.He added that the project objective is to improve natural resources management to sup-port sustainable livelihoods and aims to provide immediate and effective response in a case of emergency.“Thanks to the project and the trainings given to our farmers we are seeing them putting climate change issues into consideration as they do their farming,”said Mr. Yanda.Mr. Yanda noted thatit is because of these project that farmers have started practicing crop diversification unlike the past where they were dependent on one particular agriculture crop.He explained that the successful implementation of the project

GOAT DISEASES THREATEN TO DERAIL CLIMATE CHANGE RESILIENCE PROJECT

By CHEELO MULOONGO

As Zambiais grappling with the adverse effects of climate change, it becomes important to ensure that farmers’ lives are improved through climate change resilience by promotion of alternative and resilient livelihoods. This is exactly the aim of the Strength-ening Climate Resilience of Alternative Livelihoods in Agro-ecological Regions ǀ and II in Zambia – SCRALA Project.Among a number of initiatives that the project is implementing in Sesheke District, goat diseases are threatening the goat multiplication component.Acting District Livestock Officer, Chishala Kasakula, noted,“goat dis-eases such as internal parasites and Orf have been a challenge in the district. The proliferation of ticks has not been helpful either.”Mr Kasakula was speaking after successfully conducting a goat monitoring exercise that saw him and the team move across all the Camps in the district to check on the welfare of goats under the SCRALA Project.During monitoring, it was noted that most farmers were willing to purchase chemicals for their goats but had challenges to do so.“As you may be aware, the project beneficiaries are vulnerable but viable farmers, the level of viability varies among farmers,making it difficult for some to purchase the required drugs which has led to multiple mortalities,” Mr Kasakula explained.He remembered a situation when he found a goat had just died in the morning during a field visit in Katima Camp. “During monitoring, we found a goat that had died in the morning of the day of our visit and we did an emergency post-mortem. It was discovered that the goat had died from an acute infestation of worms,” he disclosed.Mr Kasakula explained that the owner of the goat was advised to deworm the entire flock to ensure that all the goats were safe from worms.On a positive note, the goat owners have luck on their side as the project has stepped in to support the purchase of a drugs kit that comprises of dewormers and dip, among other essential drugs, to slow down the mortality rate.To this effect, hesaid that Veterinary Officers have already started going round the camps to deworm, dip and treat all the goats under the project in the district. “Once this exercise is complete, goat mortalities in the district for goats under the project will be down to a bare minimum,” noted Mr Kasakula.Also, some of the beneficiaries who have had successes under the goat multiplication component of the project highlight some of the things they are doing which are making them more successful than their peers.“The major thing I am doing that others may not be doing is ensuring that I engage the campVeterinary Assistant in a timely manner when my goats are sick. I also buy the drugs that he rec-ommends which helps my goats to quickly recover from their ail-ments,” said Nang’alelwa Kalaluka, a Maondo Camp goat farmer,

To page 7



6 LOCAL NEWS

Farmers Urged To Upscale Soyabean ProductionBy MWIINGA MUKUWA

FARMERS in Mansa district in Luapula province have been advised to utilise inputs ac-cording to the allocated packs under the Farmer Input Support Programme(FISP).Speaking during a field dayat Farm Training Institute in Mansa whose theme was“improved farmer access to quality seed and inputs through private sec-tor engagement for improved nutrition and generation” and was sponsored by SEEDCO and Syngenta Zambia seed compa-nies.Mansa District AgriculturalCo-ordinator, Arnold Mui Mui said there is increased demand from buyers for crops such as soya beans and sorghum. Mr.Mui Mui implored farmers to utilise the inputs according to

the allocated packs. “Soya beans production can result into increased income and food security for our farmers; it has higher yield returns than maize,” he stressed. He encouraged farmers in the next coming season to utilise the information and knowledge they have obtained from the field day.And Luapula Province, Sales Ex-pert for Syngenta Zambia David Kambole has encouraged farm-ers to follow agronomic practices and encompass cross rotation.“Farmers need to look out for the maize seed SY 6444 Medium maturing variety which is currently competing with the late maturing varieties on the market in terms of yield and performance, it has the potential yield of about 13 metric tonnes which translates to 264 bags,” explained Kambole.He noted that farmers have to ensure they plant on time, manage the weed and apply compound D and urea fertiliser on time.Mr Kambole said there is also

the soya beans Dina seed variety which does not shutter in the field once it matures.He stressed that the crop has a yield potential of up to about 4.5 metric tonnes.Mr Kambole explained that this variety is also rich in oil content and proteins. He appealed to farmers to look out for certified seed as they do not encourage recycling of seed as this brings down the expected yields from the field.A farmer from Chibalashi camp, Enorine Mwewa explained that she acquired knowledge and information on the Seedco seed varieties such as 733, and 621 which will enable her improve her production capacity and also learnt the dangers of late planting.She encouraged her fellow farm-ers to know the varieties they are getting be it late maturing and medium maturing variety and the appropriate time for planting in order to maximise the yield in their fields.

7

TRALARD TRANSFORM-ING LIVES OF FARMERS IN MUNGWI DISTRICT

will give farmers an opportunity to compete with other farmers both on the local and international market.The Project Coordinator also emphasized that the initiative will also help improve the living standards of people in the area while eco-nomically strengthening the agriculture sector of the district.Mr.Yanda has since appealed to farmers to take the initiative seri-ously and ensure that they apply the knowledge acquired to grow their businesses.A beneficiary of the project belonging to Mfinshe cooperative in Mulema Sampa camp of Mungwi district, Evonne Lupando has commended government and its cooperating partners for initiating programs aimed at bettering the lives of people in remote areas of the country.Mrs. Lupando said famers in the area are eager to learn new and improved methods of farming as well as appreciate farming as a business especially where gardening and rearing of small livestock is concerned.She also observed that once trained, most women in the district will become financially dependent as the project has not left them out.We have always beendependent on rice as a main agriculture activity in our agriculture camp says, Moses Mutale Pinyolo, a member and beneficiary of Mfinshe cooperative.He said due to climate change sometimes they would experience low or delayed rainfall hence encounter losses in their rice production, this means no money to send our children to school and food to feed them.He added that vegetables were a major problem in the camp be-cause it does not have a proper water body to fetch water from.“Our cooperative was granted K730,000 by the TRALARD project to drill two (2) 50 meters boreholes, install 25,000 liters tank stands, fencing of the 4 hectors garden area, Drip irrigation pipes, a water kiosk and purchasing of 60 goats,” explained Mr. Pinyolo.He added that, ‘after the coming of TRALARD project we are seeing a bright future for our children and the community as at large’.“We as a community we now have safe water to drink, we are no longer dependent on rice for food and income, we have gardens and goats to boost us when the rain pattern is not favorable”.He further added.And a farmer in Ndasa camp and a member of Ndasa Multipurpose Cooperative, Joseph Mulenga said he is very happy that his coopera-tive is among the approved ones and was granted a total sum of K243,000 do different agriculture activities which includes growing of rice on a 10 hectare of land, 100 citrus trees (lemons, oranges and guava trees) and rearing of 60 goats.“Am seeing that we are going to have a good harvest all thanks to the project. As a cooperative we have plans to buy cattle and expand our field the next farming. And by so doing our living standard will change for the better not only individually but as a community as a whole because we are not living anyone behind that is the vulner-able and elderly,”narrated Mr. Mulenga.He commended government for TRALARD’s interventions and creat-ing awareness about climate change to the community.The proper implementation of the programme will see farmers in the district acquiring life and business skills which will enable them to sustain their lives thereby reducing poverty levels in the area.

GOAT DISEASES THREAT-EN TO DERAIL CLIMATE CHANGE RESILIENCE PRO-JECT

who currently has 16 goats after passing on five goats to the next benefitting farmer.The criteria of the project is such that the initial beneficiar-ies of the five goats have to pass on the first five kids to the next round of beneficiaries who also pass on the first five kids to another round of beneficiaries creating a goat multiplication model based on goat pass on.Another farmer from Lusu West Camp, Vincent Muyambango Mwatamela attributes his suc-cess in goat rearing to having built a recommended goat house and currently has 10 goats.“One of the secrets to ensuring success in the goat enterprise is building recommended goat structures. I built this raised structure because having goats sleep in their own droppings makes their hooves and skinsoft and susceptible to wounds which become entry points for various diseases,” said Mr Mwatamela.The goat farmers’ testimonies show that fellow farmers need to adhere to recommended prac-tices such as taking good care of their goats by building raised structures as well as buying necessary drugsfor their goats, among other ways.District Extension Methodolo-gist, Evans Thawete, noticed that there was need for farmers to be trained on how to effectively rear goats as most of them are first time goat keepers.“Farmers seem to have little knowledge on the care for goats. Therefore, there is need to train them on how to build raised structures and production of fodder to provide to the goats so that they can be sustained in an enclosure. This is because we found cases where some neigh-bours had squabbles because

goats were causing menace, according to the complaint,” he explained.Mr Thawete advised farmers to work on increasing their goat stock to ensure that they quickly pass on to the next round beneficiaries so as for them to concentrate on increasing their stock for sell. “With some farmers already having reached a level of selling part of their flock, I advise more farmers to put extra effort in this project component because it will highly benefit them. Currently, one goat is fetching around K350 and an aggregation of this amount can help them buy improved seed, pay school fees for their children, buy them uniforms and books, among other necessities,” he said.Mr Thawete praised the SCRALA Project for considering women to be the majority among benefi-ciaries as women are generally more responsible than men. He said that for the goats given to women, all household members are likely to benefit from the proceeds of the project. In Sesheke, as in many parts of the country, climate variability and droughts have characterised the rain season over the past few years. Therefore, project components such as goat rearing and multiplication give farmers a lifeline amid reduced crop pro-duction. That is why it becomes imperative for farmers to ensure that the goats that were put un-der their care are well nurtured. This is in order to achieve the aspirations of making Zambia “a prosperous climate change resilient economy” as espoused in the National Climate Change Response Strategy (2010) and the National Climate Change Policy.

From page 6

From page 6

POOR SANITATION, A HINDRANCE TO GOOD NUTRITIONBy ROYDA CHONGO

GOOD nutrition is not just about how much food is avail-able to consume, but rather about

enduring right nutrition. The first 1,000 days from pregnancy through to a child’s second birthday is the most critical mo-ment where a child’s nourish-ment determines the child’s destiny. The three main underlying causes of under nutrition are-unsuitable or insufficient food intake, poor care practices and disease. All these are directly or indirectly related to inadequate access to water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) services.Access to safe Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) is a funda-mental determinant of health and nutrition. Zambia has made good progress in improving ac-cess to WASH services with over half of the population now able to access basic sanitation. However, a large number of

the population is still practic-ing Open Defecation and water, sanitation and hand washing facilities are still inadequate in most health care facilities and schools. “A quarter of all stunting is at-tributed to episodes of diarrhea during the first 2 years of life,” says Mr. MacDonaldMulongwe, who is Scaling up Nutrition Technical Assistance (SUN TA) Northern Region Manager. Mr.Mulongwe explained that the Sun movement has taken action on better integration of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene practices and nutrition to help reduce stunting in the country. “As SUN TA, we are working in line with the presidential direc-tive which states that all provinc-es should support government in creating Open Defecation Chief-doms throughout the country,” lamented Mr.Mulongwe. And to compliment this action, Mr.Mulongwe says SUN TA has allocated funds to construct a total of 26 new water points in form of boreholes and reha-

bilitate another 26 to be divided among the two implementing districts which are Ndola and Kitwe respectively. He added that open defecation pollutes the environment and causes health problems and diseases leading to high child mortality, poor nutrition and poverty. He said ending open defecation is an indicator be-ing used to measure progress towards ending stunting among children. Mr.Mulongwe was speaking during the just ended Copper-belt provincial Open Defecation task force orientation meeting in Ndola. And Community-led total sanita-tion (CLTs) National Coordinator Leonard Mukoshasaid 1,800 chil-dren die every 30 seconds world over due to diarrheal diseases. “Proper sanitation and hygiene and safe drinking water can re-duce under nutrition and stunt-ing in children by preventing diarrheal and parasitic diseases which causes damage to the in-testinal development,” explained Mr.Mukosha. He added that diarrhea is the second leading cause of death globally in children under the age of five years and for infants particularly under 6 months of age, diarrhea can cause perma-nent damage to the intestinal development hence reducing a child’s ability to absorb food and

nutrients. “So reduction of diarrheal diseases through WASH sensi-tive interventions can preventat least 860,000 child deaths per year caused by under nutrition,” lamented Mr.Mukusha. He noted that it is for this reason that open defecation in rural and peri urban communities need to be eliminated as it contributes to a huge percentage of stunting. “People in these rural communi-ties use whatever open spaces that seem convenient as bath-rooms or toilets,” Mr.Mukosha narrated worriedly. He has since urged the open defecation provincial task force which will be chaired by the Provincial Local Government officer to go flat out in ensuring that all the communities in the target districts attain an open defecation free status within the stipulated time frame. The Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) programme is a cross ministry and multi donor programme to reduce stunting in Zambia. The Food and Nutrition Commis-sion (NFNC) implements SUN as part of the Government of the Republic of Zambia 1,000 Most Critical Days Programme. It uses various sensitive interventions through Agriculture, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), health and education, among others.

LOW COTTON PRICE DIS-COURAGING - CBZ

By Penjani Nzima

THE Cotton Board of Zambia (CBZ) has observed that cotton farmers in the country feel it is not profitable

to grow this crop due to its low floor price which is K7.20 per Kilogram at the moment.Currently, there are very few people or farmers who are will-ing to venture into cotton farm-ing owing to its low selling price on the market. CBZ Executive Director, Sunduz-wayo Banda, said the board does not set the floor price of cotton in this country. Mr. Banda said in an exclusive interview recently that he could not state what is expected for this season in terms of the cur-rent floor price of cotton as it is not in the power of the board to set the floor price for cotton. He however said any price increase above what is being offered at the moment will be a welcome move as that will trigger the appetite for growing cotton in this country. “We do not set the floor price as Cotton Board. Cotton Board can-not set the floor price because we are not mandated to set the price. But the current floor price for cotton is K7.20/Kg.“We advocate for better pricing that’s what we do. We do not set the floor price because we’re not allowed by law,” he explained. Mr. Banda disclosed that the pre planting price that was given by the cotton companies is K5 per Kilogram as a pre planting guar-antee and this has been included in the contract between cotton companies and CBZ.

He has however bemoaned the devastating impact that Covid 19 world pandemic has caused to the cotton farmers and the sec-tor at large. Mr. Banda said due to less activ-ity by most cotton farmers the production levels have been affected bringing down the ton-nages harvested per year. “We have reduced numbers of farmers and that has affected our production. As you can see last year, we only got 54,000 metric tons as compared to our average of 100, 000 metric tons annually. We are not isolated from the pandemic,” he stated.Mr. Banda further said the pandemic has even affected the price of cotton on the world market especially that of lint.He noted that as a result of covid 19 restrictions farmers cannot trade freely and a lot of activities have come to a halt as well. “We have been separated from continuity, promotions, Exports to international markets. We are not an isolated case; we are part of the global pandemic,” he said.He has however, welcomed the move to go the e - payment way in future cotton transactions fol-lowing the Covid 19 restrictions put in place by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ministry of Health respectively. “We are considering to do e - payments for farmers. For farmers means that they won’t be exchange of money between the cotton company and the cotton farmer. You reduce that contact between them it you went digital. Digital payment is the way forward especially now that we have Smart Zambia and

Forage Seed Growers In Kasa-ma Reaping The RewardsBy Natasha Mhango

Engaging small holder farmers as seed growers is a common avenue that is used to make quality seed accessible and af-fordable to the farming commu-nity. What continues to be novel to smallholder farmers is the various kind of seed that is being promoted for the agriculture and livestock sectors to continue to grow.Forage seed is one type of seed that smallholder farmers are tak-ing an interest in. Firstly because it is a much needed nutritive supplement that can enhance livestock nutrition during the dry seasons of the year. But also be-cause forage seed production is also proving to provide attractive financial returns to farmers.Through the Enhanced Small-holder Livestock Investment Program (E-SLIP), the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock is using seed growers to boost the

production and accessibility of pasture and forage seed to improve and increase livestock productivity. Some smallholder farmers are attesting to reaping increased income from this seed which is not yet readily avail-

To page 8

To page 11



LOCAL NEWS

SARO AGRO UNVEILS THE PEDIGREE OF TAFE BRANDBy Penjani Nzima

IN TODAY’S agriculture busi-ness, farmers are exposed to a myriad of agricul-tural equipment options to choose from for their

variousfarming undertakings that they are engaged in at their respective farms. From among these very different agricultural equipment, they include notable ones like the sophisticated high-tech combine harvesters to day-to-daycommon simple tractors. These numerous kinds of farm equipments that are available on the market today are there to meet the needs of both commer-cial, emergent and smallholder farmers.Be that as it may,choosing an outstanding farm equipment that will perform the desired work accordinglycan be a very challenging or rather confusing task more especially for small-holder - and emergent farmers who may have little knowledge or no knowledge on the current trends of farming equipment. It is for this reason that farmers are seriously encouraged to have some form of basic knowledge concerning the different types of farming equipment because this will be of enormous help when time to purchase this equipment comes their way. And If you’re a farmer who is in-tending or rather considering to purchase a new tractor for your farm then the renowned TAFE

brand from SARO Agro Industrial Ltd would be the best choice of options to settle for.

TheTAFE 6015 (2WD & 4WD) 60HP brand tractor is synony-mous to toughness, high stand-ards of precision and built for quality thereby integrating the expertise of TAFE.

TAFE TRACTORS

The tractor in general is univer-sal in the farming world, and it comes in a range of different sizes to fit any farming opera-tion. It is a well-known fact that the primary purpose of a tractor is to pull farm equipment, but modern tractors can be outfitted with a variety of attachments to suit just about any farming need. According to ChiileBenard, Farm

Machinery, Sales and Service Engineer at SARO Agro Industrial Ltd disclosed in an exclusive interview with Agri-Coop News-paper that the TAFE 6015 brand comes along with premium performance which is coupled with superior technology. He added that this new brand of TAFE tractors on the market from SARO Agro Industrial comes in different Horse Powers (HP)

which are TAFE 7515 – (2WD & 4WD) 75HP, TAFE 8515 (4WD) 80HP, TAFE 9515 (4WD) 90HP and TAFE 1015 (4WD) 100HP. Mr. Chiile explained that the TAFE 6015 comes both in 2WD & 4WD respectively and it is a world class comfort machine with magnificent styling.

TAFE 6015 (2WD & 4WD) 60HP SPECIFICATIONS

Model TAFE 6015 Engine Horse Power 60Exhaust Vertical Air Cleaner Dry Type ClutchDual Drive 2WD&4WDGear Box, Type 8F+2R Sliding Mesh Side Shift Final Reduction Planetary Drive PTO Single Speed, 540 rpm Hydraulic Pump Oil Immersed Auxiliary HydraulicsOptional Lift Capacity(KGF)2050Brake Oil immersedSteering Hydrostatic Front Tyres2WD 7.50X16 4WD 9.50X24Rear Tyres16.9X28 ROPS (Roll Over ProtectingSys-tems)Standard Swinging Draw BarStandardFront Weight 6Rear Weight 4Oil Pipe Kit StandardSpool ValveStandardIn the next issue we will look at the after service and main-tenance facilities for the TAFE brand that SARO Agro Industrial is providing.

For further enquires contact: ChiileBenardSARO Agro Industrial LtdFarm MachinerySales and Service

From page 7

Forage Seed Growers In Kasa-ma Reaping The Rewards

able in Zambia and therefore is pegged at a lucrative price.The Northern Province is among the few provinces in Zambia which enjoys a longer rainfall season than the rest of the coun-try. Consequently the Province has been recording gradually increased success in pasture and forage seed production. In Kasama, E-SLIP has engaged three farmers as pasture and forage seed growers.Lavender Musonda is a farmer among the trio. Unlike most women in her area, she vol-untarily participated in E-SLIP facilitated trainings to learn how to become a pasture and forage seed grower.“Some of our neighboring farm-ers laughed at us at first, saying we were investing our time and energy ingrowing nothing but grass,” she chuckled.The pessimism expressed by her neighbors made Lavender insecure and as a result, she was only willing to cultivate 3 Lima of land during her first attempt.“But this year, I have cultivated

two and half hectares of red sun hemp and 3 hectares of velvet beans,” Lavender said.This because through this seed, she is pleased with the increas-ing income she is generating for her household. She added that she has observed that she has been reaping more economic benefits from forage seed pro-duction than what she gets from her production of maize.Lavender disclosed that her forage seed harvest from the 2019/2020 farming season, gave her slightly over K15,000 which encouraged her to continue ex-panding her area of cultivation.Tuesday Shula - E-SLIP’s second seed grower - explained that one reason for the increasing house-hold income stems from the fact that seed growers are contracted to sell 90% of their harvest back to E-SLIP who he said were offer-ing attractive prices.“Last year, they bought my velvet beans at K33 per kilo, so from my 50kg I made K1650; and they bought my red sunhemp at K40 per 0.9g and dolichos lablab at K29 per kilo,” Tuesday disclosed.Both Tuesday and Lavender are

subsistence small livestock farmers. They keep chickens and a few goats and through their production of forage seed, they are learning how to utilize this seed to improve their animals’ nutrition.“When I start to rear livestock on a larger scale, I know I won’t have many problems with finding food for them,” Tuesday said.Both Tuesday and Lavender have already received forage seed for the 2021/2022 farming season and anticipate another good harvest next year.As the government continues to make aggressive strides towards increasing livestock productivity, forage seed grow-ers likeLavender and Tuesday are playing a significant role in contributing to the accessibility and, eventually, the afford-ability of forage seed in their community.

Agriculture And Forestry Donates Tree Seedlings

By HELEN WITTI

THE Ministry of Agriculture in col-laboration with the Department of Forestry in Nyimba

District of Eastern province have donated 1,600 tree seedlings to health centres, churches, schools and indi-vidual farmers.Nyimba District Senior Agri-culture Officer, Prisca Mutale confirmed that the beneficiary of the tree seedlings are dot-ted in all the 16 Agricultural camps of the district.Ms Mutale who is also a Focal Point Person for the Strength-ening Climate Resilience Agricultural Livelihoods in Agro-Ecological region 1 and 2 (SCRALA) project stated that planting of seedlings will en-able balancing of the ecosys-tem and fight climate crisis.She further stated that plant-ing of trees replaces those that are cut, lowers the air

temperature and purify the air. Ms Mutale says farmers and the community at large should plant trees as they absorb harmful gases, provides life oxygen, prevent flooding and provide shade from the sun there by reducing global warm-ing.She noted that trees reduce erosion and pollution in wa-terways and ultimately reduce the effects of floods and as such it is prudent that trees are planted in the community.Meanwhile, Ms Mutale has revealed that 16 environmental and social safeguard commit-tees have been formed and trained in Nyimba district.These committees are a strate-gic component of the SCRALA project aimed at ensuring that the communities in which the project is being implemented are well informed.She added that the commit-tees are expected to actively participate in environmental safeguard in a bid to contribute

to afforestation.Ms Mutale said that the SCRALA project is founded by Green Climate Fund (GCF), UNDP and Government of Zambia is aimed at increasing the resilience of smallholder farmers in Agro-Ecological re-gion 1 and 2 in view of climate change variability.She added that the project has moderate environmental and social risks as its implementers have a mandate to do no harm to the communities and their environment. And speaking when he re-ceived the tree seedlings on behalf of the school, Simalama School Deputy Headteacher, Mambo Mwanza thanked gov-ernment for the gesture.Mr Mwanza said that trees are important for wildlife habitat and they provide food, protec-tion and homes for many birds and mammals.



FEATURES 8

9

Mr Starfford Mulaskwanda in his Cabbage farm



FEATURES

Fish Monger To Active Veg FarmerBy Penjani Nzima

HE PLYS his agricul-ture business on a 3-acre piece of land in the outskirts of Lusakatown away

from theday-to-dayhustle and bustle business activities that takes place in the Central Busi-ness District(CBD) of Lusaka. Born more than three decades ago, right in the heart of Lusaka town, is Stafford Mulaskwanda who started pursuing his primary level of education at Chinyanja Primary School off Mumbwa road in 1992 until the time he was transferred to Kacheta Pri-mary school in Chilanga in 1996 where he sat for his grade seven examination.Despite doing well during the grade seven examinations, Staf-ford couldn’t carry on with his education so that one day he could live his dream of becoming a pilot.“I passed my grade seven exami-nation but I could not continue to grade eight due to lack of financial support,” he disclosed.After falling off from school, he took a different route away from the academics thereby shatter-ing his future dream of becoming a pilot but delved into the world of business.He opted to start buying chick-ens from Glasmeya a company that was under Eureka and re-selling them. But this business never saw much light as it was clouded with a lot of challenges that opened the door way to its

closure. With the hinges of this busi-ness door having little strength to up hold the heavy load,the company where he used to order chickens finally wind up its business transactions and closed down. As the saying goes, “When one door closes another one opens somewhere,”Mr. Mulaskwanda thought of investing into the business of buying fish from Kafue and reselling the fish to people around his area and far beyond just as a way of making ends meet for the sustenance of his family. During this time he was killing two birds with one stone be-cause he was not only involved in fish selling but also photo and video shooting.But the business of selling fish fell off along the way due to its little or less profit involved while the photo and video shooting enterprise stood its ground.“I stopped the business of selling fish in 2012 and concentrated in photo and video shooting until 2016,” he stated. After trying the businesses of selling chickens and fish as well as that of photo shootingMr. Mulaskwanda rejuvenated his old interest of farming which he developed whilst he was still living with his parents. He started helping his grandfa-ther right there at the farm up to the time when his grandfather passed on in mid2016. When his grandfather died, his family sat down to choose one of the family members who

would be capable to carry on the legacy of their grandfather at the farm.“When our grandfather died, the family decided that I should

take over the business of farming here at the farm because I had the knowledge of what used to happen. I did not refuse instead I agreed because I had the

strength, which I still have, water and electricity was already avail-able at the farm,” he said.With the little experience that he had gathered whilst working with his parents, he ventured into his own agriculture business at the farm that was left by his grandfather in 2016 where he was growing white maize. “I started my agriculture busi-ness by planting SeedCo 513 white maize until 2018 when I started incorporating other crops such as green beans and kande-laa tomato variety from SeedCo,” Mr. Mulaskwanda said. He couldn’t continue growing tomatoes due to a variety of challenges that he encountered such as lack of trees in the area to cut out poles for the tomato crops. In his pursuant of agriculture business, Mr. Mulaskwanda met one of the members of staff for seedco who introduced him to a leafy crop of cabbages.“I met one of the members of staff from seedco who explained to me about cabbage growing. I got interested and went to purchase their cabbage for the first time and it performed bet-ter. Then I did it for the second time and it performed well.I’ve now planted cabbage for the third time. I have planted a variety called Vikima VS 209,” he explained.“I am looking forward to harvest 10,000 heads of cabbages from my current field. I do follow all the good agronomical advice that SeedCo provide on how to

care for my vegetables,” he said. Mr. Mulaskwanda added that as a result of his current business, he is not living in want and has since made a passionate appeal to the people of Zambia more especially the youths who always look up to the government to give them employment that they should just venture into agricul-ture because there is everything in it. He is planning to extend his field by growing a variety of other crops such as tomatoes, green beans, soya beans, green pep-per, maize and many othercash crops. He cited the greatest challenge in his agriculture business as lack of market for his fresh farm produce. Mr. Mulaskwanda said that sometimes it is difficult to find people to buy the fresh farm produce. He is married with four children. His vision is to become one of the biggest commercial farmers in the next five years growing a wide variety of crops ranging from water melons, tomatoes, maize, onions, cabbages and many more so that he could be one of the people who are contributing positively to the country’s food security.

encourage farmers to prac-tice crop diversification

BY PETER ZIMBA

A Senior Government official in Mpika District of Muchinga Province has advised extension officers under the Ministry of Agriculture to encourage farmers to practice crop diversification and grow irrigated crops throughout the year.

Provincial Agricultural Coordinator (PACO) for Muchinga Province Victor Mulopa said growing of different crops throughout the year will help enhance house hold income, food and nutrition security.Mr. Mulopa said this during an official opening of a 5 days kick off training workshop under Expansion Community Based Small Holder Irrigation Program (E-COBSI) held at MAFF SITE in Mpika District yesterday.

Mr. Mulopa said the aim of the training was to equip officers with knowledge and skills on how to go about smart and market oriented agriculture among others.

He advised the field staff to incorporate other stake holders such as community development, ministry of livestock and fishers, headmen and many others during the implementation of this program.Mr. Mulopa explained that the E-COBSI program is a market oriented Small Holder Horticultural Empowerment Promotion Approach (SHEP) that encourages farmers to grow crops to sell and not to grow crops and sell.

Mr. Mulopa encouraged the field officers to tap to the new and improved irrigation technologies such as constructing of temporal and permanent weirs and using of farrow irrigation methods so as to easy irrigation practices

Agriculture And Forestry Donates Tree SeedlingsBy HELEN WITTI

THE Ministry of Agriculture in collaboration with the Depart-ment of Forestry in Nyimba District of Eastern province have donated 1,600 tree seedlings to health centres, churches, schools and individual farmers.Nyimba District Senior Agri-culture Officer, Prisca Mutale confirmed that the beneficiary of the tree seedlings are dotted in all the 16 Agricultural camps of the district.MsMutale who is also a Focal Point Person for the Strengthen-ing Climate Resilience Agricultur-al Livelihoods in Agro-Ecological region 1 and 2 (SCRALA) project stated that planting of seedlings will enable balancing of the eco-system and fight climate crisis.She further stated that planting of trees replaces those that are cut, lowers the air temperature and purify the air. Ms Mutale says farmers and the community at large should plant trees as they absorb harmful gases, provides life oxygen, pre-vent flooding and provide shade from the sun there by reducing global warming.She noted that trees reduce ero-sion and pollution in waterways

and ultimately reduce the effects of floods and as such it is pru-dent that trees are planted in the community.Meanwhile, Ms Mutale has revealed that 16 environmental and social safeguard committees have been formed and trained in Nyimba district.These committees are a strategic component of the SCRALA project aimed at ensuring that the communities in which the project is being implemented are well informed.She added that the commit-tees are expected to actively participate in environmental safeguard in a bid to contribute to afforestation.Ms Mutale said that the SCRALA project is founded by Green Climate Fund (GCF), UNDP and Government of Zambia is aimed at increasing the resilience of smallholder farmers in Agro-Ecological region 1 and 2 in view of climate change variability.She added that the project has moderate environmental and social risks as its implementers have a mandate to do no harm to the communities and their environment. And speaking when he received the tree seedlings on behalf of the school, Simalama School

Deputy Headteacher, Mambo Mwanza thanked government for the gesture.Mr Mwanza said that trees are

important for wildlife habitat and they provide food, protec-tion and homes for many birds and mammals.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Woodgate House 2nd Floor, Room 208 Cairo Road Luaska.Tell: +260 211 23 99 38, Cell: 096 4001116, 095 0895120

[email protected]

Disclaimer: the information published on this page is from the Facebook group Small Scale Farmers- Farming as a Business. All the opinions published are by the group participants and do not reflect the opinion of Agricoop newspaper or the SSF admins.

“Someone else’s success does not rob you of any-thing.” – UnknownI was presenting at a conference dubbed “Genuine Millionaires Movement” and one lesson I picked and learnt was that when one succeeds in farming as a business, it means that the com-munity in which that person is has gained. It is surprising sometimes that within the same commu-nity there are people who start throwing shade at some success. The truth is that in every society we find people who are full of envy and jealous and also those who want to succeed alone.I once visited a farmer in Mumbwa of Zimbabwean decent who told me that if you want to succeed in farming carry all the farmers around your farm along with you in the success equation. There is no way you can succeed alone. Success is a community concept and should never be a personal achievement because there is no one who achieves alone.He further told me that if there are insect infestations in the area or indeed disease it will attack all farms regardless hence the need to stand together in the community to help one an-other succeed. This farmer put up a communal dip tank were all neighboring farmers took animals for dipping. His logic was that he was guaranteed of no

ticks in his area once he moni-tors the rotation of spraying.One day some villagers went up to him and told him that he is a boastful guy because of his suc-cess and he wants to be showing off that he is able to do greater that everyone in the area. That same night this farmer was at-tacked and unknown people se-verely damaged the dip tank to the extent that it could no longer work anymore. He resorted to using knapsack sprayers on his animals alone and since they were many he obviously couldn’t extend to everyone.Unfortunately, there was a spread of East Coast Fever and Heartwater disease in that area and it seriously ravaged the animals in the community but guess what, not even one of his animals died. You can see the effects of jealous the community felt against this farmer. The results hurt the per-petrators and that is exactly how the leprosy of jealous works. When our neighbors are flourish-ing, let us applaud them and get close because we must count

among them in the success equation. It doesn’t hurt to congratulate someone’s good harvest. We must develop the habit of grow-ing others then we will be a force of farming command. It should not be about who the best among us but more of will how can we be the best collectively as a group.The flip of things also is don’t be stingy to succeed along, you will fail and your fall is usually louder than thunder. We had a guy from school who would come with some roasted chicken and he never wanted to share with others. He would hide it and would be eating from the locker. Unknown to him the chicken had even gotten rotten with maggots and since he ate in the dark, whenever he picked a piece to eat, he would have terrible diarrhea. Let us share knowledge and commodities were possible.No man is an island and jealous is a form of leprosy.Stop the scourge.#ZungaFarms

LOW COTTON PRICE DISCOURAGING - CBZBy Penjani Nzima

THE Cotton Board of Zambia (CBZ) has observed that cotton farmers in the country feel it is not profitable to grow this crop due to its low floor price which is K7.20 per Kilogram at the moment.Currently, there are very few people or farmers who are will-ing to venture into cotton farm-ing owing to its low selling price on the market. CBZ Executive Director, Sunduz-wayo Banda, said the board does not set the floor price of cotton in this country. Mr. Banda said in an exclusive interview recently that he could not state what is expected for this season in terms of the cur-rent floor price of cotton as it is not in the power of the board to set the floor price for cotton.

He however said any price increase above what is being offered at the moment will be a welcome move as that will trigger the appetite for growing cotton in this country. “We do not set the floor price as Cotton Board. Cotton Board can-not set the floor price because we are not mandated to set the price. But the current floor price for cotton is K7.20/Kg.“We advocate for better pricing that’s what we do. We do not set the floor price because we’re not allowed by law,” he explained. Mr. Banda disclosed that the pre planting price that was given by the cotton companies is K5 per Kilogram as a pre planting guar-antee and this has been included in the contract between cotton companies and CBZ. He has however bemoaned the devastating impact that Covid 19

world pandemic has caused to the cotton farmers and the sec-tor at large. Mr. Banda said due to less activ-ity by most cotton farmers the production levels have been affected bringing down the ton-nages harvested per year. “We have reduced numbers of farmers and that has affected our production. As you can see last year, we only got 54,000 metric tons as compared to our average of 100, 000 metric tons annually. We are not isolated from the pandemic,” he stated.Mr. Banda further said the pandemic has even affected the price of cotton on the world market especially that of lint.He noted that as a result of covid 19 restrictions farmers cannot trade freely and a lot of activities have come to a halt as well. “We have been separated from

continuity, promotions, Exports to international markets. We are not an isolated case; we are part of the global pandemic,” he said.He has however, welcomed the move to go the e - payment way in future cotton transactions fol-lowing the Covid 19 restrictions put in place by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ministry of Health respectively. “We are considering to do e - payments for farmers. For farmers means that they won’t be exchange of money between the cotton company and the cotton farmer. You reduce that contact between them it you went digital. Digital payment is the way forward especially now that we have Smart Zambia and many other platforms where farmers can even access their money,” he said.Mr. Banda said the Board has

already embarked on e- pay-ments being done in isolated places because the graduation from physical cash payments to cashless cannot be done at once, it is a gradual process. He has since encouraged more farmers to consider growing cotton and not to be afraid of crop failure which can happen to any other crop be it soya beans, maize or groundnuts. “The major risk in agriculture is crop failure and this can happen on any crop whether soya beans or cotton aside. “What we are advising the farm-ers is to diversify. That means you are not handling one crop but you are growing other crops as well by following the princi-ples of conservation farming,” he said.

Growth of the Farm is in the practical Experience of the Owner

Dear Editor,

I have taken note that many farmers today expect to get an A+ result from their farms without put-ting in much effort or attention.Some only visit their farms once in a while or on weekends to monitor their farms, for some it’s pos-sible to get good results however, the fact is that for many of us that entails that we get zero experi-ence and understanding of the farm.The trend seems to be growing on a daily basis, we see many people buying farms and investing in big projects on the same farms yet remain in their homes and leave all the work for their caretaker.My appeal to my fellow farmers is that they take keen interest in undertaking these projects them-selves or they risk sending money to their caretakers who will only swindle them of their money.You are thereal carrier of the real vision, the growth of your farm is in the practical experience of the owner you can only maximize when present because then you will be able to monitor progress closely when you are right where the problem is.

Zhunga Simbwalanga



BRAZSEED - A TOTAL REVOLUTION IN GRAZING PASTURESBy Penjani Nzima

NUTRITION and genetics are the key elements for any livestock farmer to thrive

in their Livestock business, Agriserve Agro Managing Director, Liesel Otten has observed. She stated that the Livestock sector is currently registering a lot of growth and nutrition is the key element for the whole cattle to grow faster and become more financially viable. Feeding cattle must be done in a way that will improve the animal’s performance in rela-tion to other animals.And it’s in this vein that Ag-riserve Agro has introduced Brazseed. This is a unique seed variety that will bring about a total revolution in grazing and land use in Zam-bia. The Brazseed varieties that Agriserve Agro has are Panicums and Brachiaria.She said that the Brazseed varieties are Panicum Mom-baca, Panicum Zuri, Bracharia Piata, Bracharia Ruziziensis and Brachiaria Marandu.Madam Otten disclosed that these species of grass are the easiest to maintain and very nutritious for cattle. Now talking about grass as

being the easiest and most recommendable feedstuff for cattle, Madam Otten added that just like grains, there is a wide range of pasture (grass) for cattle whose origin is Zambia. “Its origin is Zambia and it grows so well that it’s practically easy to grow and maintain, however, it has de-pleted due to overgrazing and non-fertilizing,” Liesel said.

She said the Czech Centre of excellence has taken the mother seed of the grass to Brazil so as to refine it over the years not Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs), but just to bring it back to its original state. “It is the mother seed that gets harvested in local areas and then the best genetics in the seed are taken. Those genetics are grown and the

gemination is restored back to what the original grass would have been. It’s not genetic modification its more proceed of refinement, “she explained. She further added that Agris-erve Agro has expanded its va-rieties of grass seed pastures in order to meet the need of every livestock farmer.“We have expanded the varieties with regards to the Bracharia. We have added two

more families to the Bracha-ria,” she said. She has assured the livestock farmers that these seed va-rieties originate from Africa and are suitable for Zambian soil conditions and its climate respectively.Madam Otten stated that Ag-riserve Agro is concentrating on climate smart messages especially with the expansion of seed varieties. She adds that the re-estab-

lished quality will be sold and circulated around Zambia to all farmers so that it is regen-erated. Livestock feed has combined ingredients known as feed-stuff. It is a combination of grains, by-products, oilseeds and roughages.

10

11

Alex ChoompoCell: [email protected]

EDITORIAL

EDITORIAL

Woodgate House 2nd Floor, Room 208 Cairo Road Luaska.Tell: +260 211 23 99 38, 095 0895120

E:[email protected], W:www.agricoopnewspaper.com

THE LIFE of every crea-ture is in its blood.………..Leviticus 17:14. This goes to show just how impor-tant blood is in the life of every living creature without which the same living creature will cease to exist. Just as blood is very es-sential to the life of every living creature so is water to the plants. This pre-cious and rare commodity which is nothing but water happens to be the life-blood of every plant. Its importance to the plants cannot be over emphasized. And lack of this very important rare commodity to the plant will result in drastic conse-quences to the very plant even death of the same plant in some instances.And water is the one that

provide the passage way of carrying nutrients from the soil to the plant cells, implying that the plants that receive adequate water amounts will be stronger and healthier. But this is not the case with the Avocado plants that have been deprived of this essential rare com-modity and as a result their stability and health status have nothing good to write home about thereby affecting even their yields.The case in question is about Avocado Growers Association of Zambia (AGAZ) who recently disclosed through their Secretary how most of the Avocado farmers are being affected by the critical water shortage for their plants.

We are displeased as Agri-Coop Newspaper to notice that in this time and age these Avocado farmers would surely depend on shallow wells that do not provide a permanent source of this rare com-modity. What a way to go!“The major problem is wa-ter. Majority of our mem-bers don’t have access to water especially those who are in Kasisi area.

They depend on shallow wells and then by August those wells do dry up. Even if you know how to manage trees you can’t manage them prop-erly without water. Water shortage has been our major problem,” com-plained Mr. Lungu. Furthermore, we are sad-dened to discover that as a result of this same critical water shortage,

the Avocado farmers have lost out on a very lucrative deal to export Avocado fruit to South Africa. We are made to under-stand that such oppor-tunities do not easily come our way. But if one shows up like the case for the Avocado farm-ers the best thing was to simply seize it. We pretty understand and believe that this would have been a very good opportunity to ex-plore the much needed and talked about foreign market thereby increas-ing on the income base for the local farmersas well as improving their livelihood. It does not make good reading that in this mod-ern day especially the

21st Century, the Avocado farmers can still be de-pending on shallow wells to access water for their plants and later on finding themselves in awkward situations even losing out on lucrative deals. Truly no ways. If only deep bore holes can be sunk for these Avo-cado farmers, then life can be better and productivity may return to normal. We are strongly appealing to the authorities to look into the plight of these vulnerable but viable Avo-cado farmers by assisting them with soft loans that can end their water blues.

Aquaculture and the Fishing Ban

Farmers in the aq-uaculture industry ought to understand how the fishing ban affects them. They must keep their mar-

ket calendar seriously. Know-ing that an annual three-month fishing ban period is eminent must represent an eminent deficit of fish supply in the fish-eries industry. The fishing ban is always effected on 1st Decem-ber and lifted on the exact date of the year that follows on the 28thof February. The Fishing Ban period is a remarkable peak period for fish business. Shortfall sup-ply of fish products from the natural waters, results into high demand for fish. All the natural water bodies and tributar-ies are closed to all forms of commercial fishing activities. This puts the fish farmers at an advantage as their fish products are not directly affected by the ban. However, The Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock commit regular patrols by monitoring fish movement and fishing activity. The Fisheries Act is therefore enforced through the mandate given to the Fisheries Department. In major fisher-ies the Zambian Government through the department of fisheries conduct surveillance patrols on both land and water during the aforementioned fish-ing ban period. Fisheries department is the major stakeholder among the many regulators and law enforcement agencies conduct-ing operations in the fisheries industry. Fish farmers have to secure their fish farming busi-

ness from the commotions that happen during the fishing ban period. Fish farming is a serious business that requires proper documentation. Farmers need to put their paper work in place during their various undertak-ings with relevant authorities before pursuing production or any services pertained at all the value chains involved. Securing fish farming business starts by identifying and understanding the course of value chain the farmer wishes to undertake. This helps famers to follow the laid down procedures and standards of conducting ser-vices in related the fish farming business and the consequent management of facilities for quality raising of both livestock and their byproducts. Farmers must not establish aquaculture facilities without notifying the department of fisheries. Move-ment of live species of fish are monitored and regulated by the Department of Fisheries. Certain species are not allowed to be cultured in specified river basins. However special permissions may be granted by an endorsed approval following prior inspec-tions and tentative environmen-tal assessments. The seven main notable value chains in fish farm-ing are hatchery and nursery, grow out fish production, food fish production, processing and preserving, packaging, transpor-tation and marketing. These value chains are not only notable from the natural fisheries such as capture but also practiced in fairness from Aquaculture. Fish farmers are urged to comply with regulations that aim at serving the industry

from over exploitation of fisher-ies resources. This is done by allowing authorities to conduct inspections, by obtaining clear-ance documents such as the Cer-tificates of Origin of Fish and the Import Permit and Export per-mits. Fish farmers must ensure that they get clearance from the department of fisheries before transportation of fish. The fish

ban law stipulates that live fish must be declared before stocking by checking with the department whether such particular spe-cies can be grown in fish ponds and cages located near stated water bodies. While the fishing ban law demands that all fish products from fish farms must be accompanied by documents showing the source of fish and

the destination intended to be delivered. This is the only best way the fish farmers can secure their businesses to avoid seizure and avoidable prosecutions associated with the fishing ban. Failures to comply with these regulations, farmers risk losing fish, risks being apprehended, fined or even convicted.

Irrigation panacea to household food security – Eng. CheeloBy Moses Nyati

CENTRAL Province Senior Irrigation Of-ficer Cheelo Muden-da Senkwe has said irrigation is the only

assured way of mitigating the effects that climate change has poised on the farming commu-nity with regards to household food security.Eng. Cheelo said household food security can only be assured if farmers embraced simple irriga-tion systems that were being promoted by JICA’s Expanded Community Based Smallholder Irrigation Development Pro-ject (E-COBSI) which is being implemented in Chitambo, Mkushi and Serenje using the Smallholder Horticultural Em-powerment Promotion (SHEP) approach.The Senior Irrigation Officer hasthus encouraged farmers and officers in the Province to embrace the new E-COBSI technology which promotes the construction of simple weirs and canals using cheap and lo-cally available materials such as grass, twigs and wooden poles.

Eng.Cheelo further added that E-COBSI was changing the nar-rative of irrigation by includ-ing the aspect of marketing so that farmers take irrigation as a business which canbe practiced all year round thus contribut-ing to improved household nutritional,income and food security.She mentioned further that through the project, farmers would beimparted with skills in water management, on-farm management and also nutritional improvement activities.Eng. Cheelo was speaking in an exclusive interview with the National Agricultural Informa-tion Services (NAIS)during the recently held E-COBSI Kick-off Training workshop that attracted officers from the three named districts of central province.Meanwhile, Senior Marketing Development Officer, Gershom Sikazwe encouraged officers in the Ministry to adopt the Small-holder Horticultural Empower-ment Promotion (SHEP)approach even as they implement various government activities.Mr. Sikazwe said SHEP approach

was an extension approach which focuses on market ori-ented agriculture and promotes the change of farmers’ mind on marketing from ‘grow and sell’ to ‘grow to sell’.He further mentioned that SHEP approach promotes farming as a business as they is mutual ex-change of information between market actors and producers who in this case are farmers.Ands peaking during the close of the training workshop, Central Province Principal Agricul-tural Officer (PAO) Julius Malipa thanked JICA for the Kick-off training and further called onthe participants to ensure that they implement that which they have learnt during the five day inten-sive training.E-COBSI is a community-based smallholder irrigation develop-ment project whose role is to increase area under irrigation through the provision of small-holder irrigation infrastructure and management skills to small-holder farmers so as to improve their agricultural productivity.

LOW COT-TON PRICE DISCOURAG-ING - CBZmany other platforms where farmers can even access their money,” he said.Mr. Banda said the Board has already embarked on e- pay-ments being done in isolated places because the graduation from physical cash payments to cashless cannot be done at once, it is a gradual process. He has since encouraged more farmers to consider growing cotton and not to be afraid of crop failure which can happen to any other crop be it soya beans, maize or groundnuts. “The major risk in agriculture is crop failure and this can happen on any crop whether soya beans or cotton aside. “What we are advising the farm-ers is to diversify. That means you are not handling one crop but you are growing other crops as well by following the princi-ples of conservation farming,” he said.

From page 7



WATER IS THE LIFEBLOOD OF EVERY PLANT

SUPREME SEEDS

SUPREME SEED T/A KGMLPrivate bag 298 Manda Hill, Lusaka Zambia, Email: [email protected]

SUPREME Seed is a woman owned business that produces/processes certified

legume seeds such Cowpeas, Groundnuts, Soya Beans, Sugar Beans in Zambia

Agriculture, Manufacturing, Agribusiness, Seed Specialist, Value addition,

Soya Beans Experts, Grain Trading, Solar, and Certified legume seed

Specialist

Tel : 0977 882 274 - 095 4197 332

Specialties

Plot No Plot 20/11, Mumbwa, Central Province Zambia

LUSAKA:

MUMBWA:

After carefully selecting the seed, from the byproducts we produce Soya bean

cakes, Soya chunks, Edible oils, Soya instant Porridge and Stock Feeds.

Agrico

op d

esig

n

Providing Solutions To Optimise Farm Productivity For The Farmer Through Innovation & Cost Effective Quality Products To Provide The CustomerBetter Value For Money

Cropserve Mpongwe, Commercial Shop No. 2 Machiye Road, Cell: +260 978 168324, 0975 614419.

Cropserve Mazabuka, Plot No. 1557, Livinstone Road, Tel: 0966 938651.

Cropserve Mumbwa4ways Building, Agro Complex Plot No. 148, Shop No. 4, Tel: 0979 663713.

Cropserve Choma Plot No. 261, Singani Road, Tel: 0977 793377.

Cropserve Lusaka, Plot No. 5055, Mumgwi Road,

Tel: +260 211 212514, Cell: 0979 276770, 0979 26773.

Cropserve Mkushi, Mkushi Town Centre, Independence Avenue, Cell: 0977 63895.

Cropserve Kabwe, Shop No. 6811, New Kasanda Market, Lusaka - Zambia, Cell:0977 898587

CELL: +260 977 886 876 +260 967 922 113 +260 979 099 998

JOIN THE NEW ERA IN AGRICULTURE FOR FREE

NETWORKING ZONE: • Increase your network capacity and expand

your reach• Increase your business footprint in Africa

E-LEARNING ZONE:• Unlimited access to agri-educational

material…learn, share, grow!• Opportunity to educate your target

audience

ONLINE STORE: • Buy or sell online at 0% commission…

no middlemen • Find new distributors and agents for

your products

OUTREACH PROGRAM: • Got a good idea?…APPLY for FUNDING!• Change your ideas into reality and APPLY

NOW!

www.ag1.global

Download the app and SUBSCRIBE FOR FREE for unlimited access…welcome to the digital

frontier!



12 ADVERTISEMENT

13

Location - Unit 1 krimanvy properties, Mungwi Center, Plot 7403 Mumgwi Road, Lusaka, Zambiaontact: +260 974 688 672, +260 954 40127, +260 962 039 788Email: [email protected], Web: www.pipemaster.zm

PIPE MASTER ZAMBIA LTD

We are suppliers Of high quality GI,UPVC,PPR-PPE,HDPE PIPES PVC pipes

CELL:+260 974 688 672

AG

RIC

OO

P D

ES

IGN



ADVERTISEMENT

SUPPLIERS OF Heavy Duty and portable stching Machines & spares of all types of bagscloser machines & repairing.

P. O. Box 32514CM, Lumumba RoadOpposite Handmans Paradiise,Near Mt Meru Filling Staon.

Cell: +260 977 727 191Office: +260 955 727 191email: [email protected]

WILLIAMS GENERAL DEALERS

Trading in agricultural machinery & supply & installation of irrigation equipment, Solar

Submersible Pumps, General Plumbing work, Generators, Hand Pumps, Hammer Mill Fabrications, Tank stands, Domestic & Commercial Pumps. Repair of Pumps,

Tractors, etc

WATERNET ZAMBIA LIMITED

Plot 692 Chachacha Road northend, Lusaka, Zambia

Tell: +260 977717321 /+260 977 463412 +260 973226654

Email: [email protected]

WATERNET ZAMBIA LTD

Water & Energy Solutions

ZwATERNETAMBIA



FEATURES

POPCORN PRODUCTION(Joship Enterprise)

By Joshua Mubanga

Popcorn (Zea mays var. everta) is a member of the grass family and, other than sweet sorghum, is the only member of that fam-ily that is intentionally grown in the garden.There are many types of corn, including popcorn, sweet corn, dent corn, pod corn, flour corn and flint corn. Popcorn is distin-guished from other corns by its explosive seed when exposed to high temperatures. It has been cultivated for several thousand

years. There are two types of popcorn grown, pearl and rice. Pearl popcorn has round smooth kernels, while rice popcorn kernels are elongated. Varieties can be grown for red, pink, blue, yellow and multicolored ears. The plants can be shorter than sweet corn. Even though the yield is about the same, popcorn lasts much longer in storage. The quality of popcorn depends on the conditions during growing, harvest and storage.

GROWING POPCORN

Popcorn needs full sun and rich,

well-drained soil. Plant popcorn when winter is done and the soil is warm. Sow seed directly in the garden. Sow the seeds 1 to 2 meters deep (about two seeds per hole) and space them 8 to 10 centimeters apart, watering thoroughly. Thin germinated seeds later, if needed. Grow popcorn plants in several short rows spaced 18 to 24 meters apart to ensure good pollination and well-filled ears.Do not plant sweet corn and popcorn in the same garden; if they happen to shed pollen at the same time, the sweet corn quality might be reduced.

Choose a location with access to irrigation because, just like other corn plants, popcorn plants require plenty of water during the growing season. Drought stress seriously impacts the qual-ity of the harvest, so keep the soil moist at all times. Popcorn needs 1 1/2 to 2 liters of water per week from either rain or irrigation.Popcorn needs an abundance of nitrogen during the growing season. When the plants are about 6 meters high, side dress with 1/2 pound of high-nitrogen fertilizer per 100 square feet. Spread the fertilizer down the

sides of the rows and water it in. Side dress again with 1/4 pound of fertilizer when plants are about knee high or once the ears form silk.Weeds compete with popcorn for nutrients and moisture. Cul-tivate the soil around the plants regularly to eliminate weeds. Take care not to damage the roots or pull the soil away from the plants while cultivating.Water, fertilize and weed regu-larly. When the corn is about knee high, add soil over the ex-posed roots for good support. Any serious stress can greatly reduce yields and the quality of the popcorn.If growing popcorn late in the season, determine how many days until maturity (usually this information is on the seed package) and make sure it will have time to mature before frost.

POLLINATION CONSIDERATION FOR POPCORNPopcorn is wind pollinated. Growers can manually help pol-lination by gently shaking the stalks. The pollen of the male flowers (the tassels) need to reach the female flowers (the silks). Planting in squares will drastically improve pollination as the wind-blown pollen grains will have a better chance at landing on another corn stalk. Sixteen stalks in a 4-foot by 8-foot area is a minimum for good pollination.The wind pollination can be an issue if growing two types of popcorn, especially if planning

to save seed. You could get cross-pollination. Separate planting dates by a couple of weeks so that the corn doesn’t tassel at the same time, or grow the same type of popcorn.

Popcorn CultivarsSeveral different varieties are available to home gardeners. Be sure to select a variety that will mature in your area.Most seed catalogs list popcorn varieties for home gardeners. To find one that grows best under conditions in your area, try sev-eral over a couple of years; and keep testing new ones as they come on the market. Maturity is important in variety selection because popcorn that does not reach full maturity before frost will have very poor quality.

Tom Thumb popcorn grows to be about 3 feet tall and is a popular cultivar (variety) all over the country.Cultivar Kernel Color Days to Maturity HeightCutie Pops Multicolored 100 6 feetMini Blue Dark blue 100 6 feetMini Pink Purplish pink 105 6 feetRobust Yellow 112 8 feetRuby Red Dark red 110 8 feetShaman’s Blue Purplish blue 112 7 feetStrawberry Dark red 00 4 feetTom Thumb Yellow 84 3 feetTop Pop Yellow 100 6 feet

WATER SHORTAGE DISTURB AVOCADO FARMERS

By Penjani Nzima

THE low production levels of Avocado fruit that Avocado farm-ers are harvesting is highly attributed to

the critical - water shortage be-ing experienced by these same farmers. This very shortage of water has caused the Avocado farmers to even lose out on the export of Avocadofruit to South Africa due to the low outputlevels that cannot support and sustain the readily available export market. Speaking in an exclusive inter-view with Agri-Coop Newspaper via telephone, Special Lungu, Secretary of the Avocado Grow-ers Association of Zambia (AGAZ) disclosed that the most affected farmers are those that complete-ly depended on shallow wells to access water for their plants. “The major problem is water. Majority of our members don’t have access to water especially those who are in Kasisi area. They depend on shallow wells and then by August those wells-do dry up. So even if you know how to manage trees you can’t manage them properly without water. Water shortage has been our major problem,” complained

Mr. Lungu. He said despite the problem being acute there is a glimmer of hope for the Avocado farmers that is soon to come from the trade Centre located near the Olympic Youth Development Centre (OYDC) that has prom-ised to come to the aid of these farmers. “The trade Centre near OYDC has put up a programme to help some farmers by giving them solar pumps to help them with water for irrigation. “It will be some kind of a soft loan which will be recovered gradually from the supply of the fruit to the plant; instead of paying the total they will be deducting a certain amount. So, it will be soft loans,” noted Mr. Lungu.He further said the trade Centre has even shown interest in procuring large quantities of the avocado fruit that it intends to transform into Avocado oil upon procuring of the processing machines.This move has elated the As-sociation because it’s a sure sign that the market for the avocado fruit is will be readily available locally. He said, “They plan to process Avocado oil we think that is the

opening of the market because we will not even need to export. We have to supply to that plant. So we need huge quantities to keep that plant running 24 hours. Market is not really a problem,” he said.Mr. Lungu disclosed that despite the Association having an excess of more than 200 members not all of them are into production of the fruit.“The Avocado Association has an excess of 200 members but not all the members are active and not all members are in produc-tion others have planted trees in the last two years, one year and so and so we still have that prob-lem of production,” he noted.He has however bemoaned the mushrooming of various cooperatives who are claiming to belong to the avocado industry. “There is a problem now. There are a number of small coopera-tives that have come up all in the name of Avocado industry. These will create a problem in the industry. We want to see how Ministry of Commerce can help us because these are coopera-tives and ours is an Association. We want to see how we can harmonize these two,” he said. Mr. Lungu stated that the mush-rooming of these cooperatives

started last year and that’s the more reason why the Associa-tion is appealing to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry for assistance. “These cooperatives started emerging last year. I don’t know whether they are attracted by money the government is giv-ing in form of empowerment. There are several cooperatives that have come in the name of Avocado growing. “Our constitution does not empower us to interfere in other people’s affairs. That’s why we want Ministry of Commerce because those cooperatives are under Ministry of Commerce,” explained Mr.Lungu. He has since requested for assistance from well-wishers especially in the line of office equipment for the Association’s offices. “Our office equipment currently require some modification and so there is need for some fund-ing for those that can help us it will go a long way,” Mr. Lungu has appealed.

More Research for The Perfect Bean!By SEBASTIAN CHIPAKO

IMAGINE the idea of having the perfect bean! A bean is able to resist diseases, one that is drought resistant, high yielding and is extremely nutri-tious and tasty!This could be actualized with heightened investment in research and development of bean varieties that appeals to desires and needs of various markets.New varieties of beans have continued gaining prominence the world over with many ap-pealing to an array of players on the market according to their specific needs.The needs are particularly peculiar, depending largely on the sole purpose for cultivating a particular variety or the main business of the client.In the recent past, various markets have emerged for the swelling production levels of many bean varieties and have continued growing in size.Some of these eye the nutri-tious sensitive varieties that have been tailored to meet spe-cific nutritional needs of con-sumers, while others gravitate towards the tasty, high yielding varieties that give excellent

returns for the farmers.While others have been engineered to resist diseases, tolerate droughts and still return the tastiness thus appealing mas-sively to the consumers.The bean breeders explained at a field day held at Malashi milking center that research into these is cardinal to producing a variety that not only responds to climate change but also is high yielding for income generation.Chief Agriculture Research Offic-er for regions 1 and 2, Kennedy MuiMui revealed that 20 varie-ties have so far been released on the market through research and have gained prominence within the country and region.Mr.Muimui added that because of their specially engineered qualities and demand on the market, they have the poten-tial to spin the lives of many, especially small-scale farmers positively.He disclosed that market for these varieties has boomed lo-cally, with local seed companies, chain stores and canning compa-nies among the major buyers. “The region has also opened up market for beans, with South

To page 15

14

15AGRI-COOP NEWSPAPER, JUNE 2021 | VOLUME 146


Differentiating Pure Natural Honey From Counterfeit Adulterated Honey

Owing to the high demand for the honey commodity and the lucrative business opportuni-

ties it offers, some people have resorted to selling counterfeit honey which is mostly adulter-ated by adding syrups and other substances. This article gives highlights on how to identity and differentiate pure natural honey from adulterated honey. Pure natural honey is composed of in excess of 180 substances. These include:- Water-17 to 20% in ripe honey; Fructose; Glucose; Sucrose; Vitamins- A, B Caro-tene, B1 complex, Biotic B com-plex, B2, C, E, Ascorbic acid and Folic acids; Minerals; Proteins; Alcohol; Yeast; and Enzymes.Pure natural honey has the fol-lowing properties:

I. Acidity. Honey is acidic and will react in contact with metal. Storage containers should be made of acid resistant materi-als, materials such as stainless steel, glass, tin or plastic, or lined with acid resistant lacquer.II. Fermentation. Honey will ferment if mixed with water. Unripe honey must never be cropped as it is bound to fer-ment.III. Hygroscopic. Honey will absorb moisture from the atmosphere and must be stored in air tight containers.IV. Granulation. Good

quality honey will form granules after storing for some time. This does not affect the quality or properties of honey. To remove them, heat the honey gently in a water jacketed container until all the crystals are dissolved.

V. Antiseptic. Enzymes in honey produce Hydrogen Peroxide that kills bacteria and prevents the growth of micro-organisms. It is a sterile solution which will never go mouldy.VI. Medicinal. Honey has antibiotic properties and modern science is proving why folk medicinal recipes containing honey are effective.It is most important that the quality of honey be maintained very high. Maintaining quality of honey means doing as little to it as possible. The quality of honey cannot be improved through processingGood quality honey isI. Ripe honey from capped honey combsII. Processed using clean equipmentIII. Not over heated or over filteredIV. Stored in a clean and dry environmentV. Free from scraps of wax or any other contaminants

SIMPLE TESTS FOR HONEY QUALITYGood quality honey is ripe honey collected from capped honey

combs. This will have about 20% water content. Water con-tent can accurately be meas-ured using a refractometer. In its absence, simple procedures can help give a rough indica-tion of the water content. The following simple tips can help determine whether the honey is pure or impure.

. Dip a spoon into honey. Lift the spoon out and observe whether the sub-stance drips immediately. If it does, the water content is too high.2. Drop honey into water and observe. If it sinks without mixing with the water; it is likely to be pure, ripe honey. If it mixes or dissolves quickly in water, it may be unripe or adulterated.3. Put a small drop of honey on your thumbnail. Check if it spills or spreads. If it spreads, then the honey is impure.4. Pure honey is flam-mable and to check if honey is 100% pure, start by taking a matchstick and dip the tip of the matchstick with honey. Strike the matchstick on the matchbox to see if it lights. If the honey is pure, the match-stick will easily light up and the honey will keep burning. But if the honey is impure, it will not light up as it contains mois-ture.

5. A blotting paper can also be used as a test to see if honey is diluted with water. Put a few drops of honey on a blot-ting paper.it may be absorbed or leave a wet mark on the paper. Both pure and impure honey

will not be absorbed but impure honey will leave a wet mark.

6. Pure honey tends not to be sticky if you rub it between your fingers.7. Pure honey is very thick and takes a good time to move from one side of the con-tainer to the other.8. Upon heating, pure honey caramelizes quickly but does not make foam.

9. Pure honey when spread on a slice of bread, the bread will become solid in a fewminutes while impure honey will wet and moisturize the slice of bread because of additives.Honey can vary in colour from almost colourless to dark brown and that it must not have a strange taste or smell. The colour of crystallised honey is much lighter.Honey can be tampered with by adding refined sugars, such as maltose and saccharide, or fruit syrup. In a simple laboratory the glucose content can be deter-mined through titration. This method is difficult to carry out in the field however. Direct screen-ing for glucose and fructose is also possible using simple tools to determine the rotation of the polarisation plane of light shining through the honey.Together with the moisture content, the HMF content is one of the most important quality criteria for honey. HMF is the abbreviation for Hydroxymethyl-furfural, a substance formed by one of the sugars in honey when it is heated or warmed for a long time. HMF is also found in large amounts of cane sugar and in-verted sugar syrups. Presence of HMF can therefore be an indica-tion of tampering or mixing with sugars. The substance is not toxic for people, but it is for bees.Both the EU and Codex Alimen-tarius have determined that the

HMF content in honey may not be higher than 40 mg/kg. Comb honey and freshly centrifuged honey have an HMF content of less than 5 mg/kg. If honey is stored, the HMF content in-creases by 1-2 mg/kg per month at a temperature of 200C. After two years the maximum value of 40 mg/kg has usually been reached. In tropical conditions it will probably be reached even quicker. Honey from tropical areas is therefore permitted by law to have a maximum HMF content of 80 mg/kg as long as it is labelled as tropical honey.

FEATURE

More Research for The Perfect Bean!Africa providing a huge mar-ket, and many other Southern Africa development Countries (SADC) providing insatiable market for these varieties we are producing,”Mr.Muimui said.Some of the highlighted, exceptionally impressive varieties, which are also highly demanded within the country and outside are the renowned iron and Zinc rich Mbereshi and Lui beans,Lungwebungu, the famously tasty sugar bean.Others are Lufubu bean, which stands out with its peculiar black color, also known as Zorro is said to be very nutritious and tasty,Lwangeni which is small and white in color is specifically for canning and has attracted buyers from within and outside the country.There is also the Sadzu, Kalambo, Lwangeni, Lunga, Lusemfwa, Kalungu and many other varie-ties that are specially bred to resist some diseases that are usually a menace to beans such as Angular leaf spot, common bacteria blight, Anthracnose, bean common mosaic virus and rust.Mr.Muimui stressed the need for small-scale farmers to embrace the bean technology which

are tailored to thwart some diseases, are high yielding and drought resistant as well as could increase their incomes.Researchers in Zambia have continued breeding bean varie-ties with an objective of coming up with varieties that will not only address issues of nutrition, diseases and yielding but also the climate change issue.A re-

searcher and lecturer at the University of Zambia, who is also a bean breeder, Kelvin Kamfwa disclosed that there has not been a lot of local investment in research and development to hasten the development of bean varieties that would increase incomes of farmers. He explained that support has been trickling in from outside the country with organizations such as the Kirkhouse Trust

from the United Kingdom and USAID.Dr.Kamfwa stressed the over-riding need to pump more re-sources in research so that more varieties are developed to meet different conditions and farmer’s expectations.With the resources the univer-sity is receiving for breeding varieties, over two thousand

varieties have been bred and are undergoing trials at a site in the outskirts of Mpika district in Malashi area.“We are currently conducting trials for a number of varieties we have developed, they seek to address many challenges the ordinary varieties encounter. With the new varieties diseases are resisted, some are drought resistant. They all have different characteristics,” he explained.Dr.Kamfwa echoed the potential

these varieties have of uplifting the living standards of many es-pecially the small-scale farmers.He is optimistic that after suc-cessful trials, more exciting new varieties could be hitting the market in the next two to three years.Dr.Kamfwa explained that mar-ket for new bean varieties is very enormous owing to high demand

for these within the country and outside.“There is need for these varieties to get in the hands of farmers as soon as the release process is done so that they start ben-efiting from the science being applied.”Dr.Kamfwa also reiterates the need for farmers to be involved in the variety selection at a very early stage and on farm trials.He explained that farmers are usually plugged in from incep-

tion therefore this would ease adoption process unlike where researchers work in isolation from the farmers.Despite the optimism, these experts have generally agreed that the biggest challenge faced when trying to establish a new product on the market, espe-cially in the agriculture sector is low adoption rate.The bean breeders from ZARI and the University of Zambia seem to be on the right track in tackling this challenge.Chief Agricultural Research Offic-er from ZARI Region III,Crisanty Chama disclosed that the par-ticipatory variety selection being applied in the development of new varieties is the way to go.He explains that this enables farmers help in the selection of bean varieties following different market preferences including color, size and many others.“This enables farmers be part and parcel of the bean agenda, from trials all the way up to when a variety is being released. It improves adoption levels of these technologies and helps new varieties concretize their position on the market,” he explained.Mr. Chama emphasized that participatory variety selection as

Frm page 14 a methodology gives an oppor-tunity to merge the indigenous knowledge and insight with the new technology to come up with varieties which will be easily ac-ceptable on the market.There is need for farmers to diversify their agriculture espe-cially in Muchinga province to cultivating crops such as hybrid bean varieties. Not just the low yielding, disease plagued old varieties, but the newly devel-oped varieties that have huge markets.These have the potential to propel the lives of many small scale farmers to higher heights and out of the impoverishment of earning less from agriculture.The theme for the field day which attracted over 300 farmers was“Embracing bean technologies for sustainable economic empowerment in the new normal”and sends a timely message to small scale farmers in the province.

Dr.Kamfwa explained that market for new bean varieties is very enormous owing to high demand for these within the country and outside.

Mr Mumba Ai A practising beekeeper and Director of Train-ing at Al-Apis Con-cepts Ltd

This information is brought to you in the community service of Al – Apis Concepts Ltd.

For your questions and clari-fications from this feature, contact the author on 0967 419 551/0954 186 973. Email: [email protected]. For all your beekeeping requirements contact Al-Apis Concepts Ltd. Phone: +260 966 474757

Alick James Mudenda was a major in the Zambian Army. His record presented certain excellence, and he was promoted because of it, however, one day his ascension in the military hierarchy came to an end.Being a major in the Army he was entrusted with various duties which entailed several responsibilities. Part of those responsibilities was seeing to it that army facilities under his command were kept in an exemplary manner. Most of all he loved the farming duties he was given for they had made a lot of money through this venture. One fateful day he was visited by the Military Police who asked him to go with them to answer a few questions. Amongst them was an auditor. Major Mudenda realized something regarding his management of things wasn’t going well. He struggled to remember what it was but could not. He was only relieved his conscious was free. Three weeks later he was before a court-martial. We’re he was amongst others who were being tried.Weeks ago Alex Learned that several dynamite explosives had gone missing in his care. He testified to not knowing anything about it. Fortunately for him, his alibies checked out and he was mostly free at that point. The real culprits still had to be discovered and dealt with according to army procedures. Even though evidence showed that he wasn’t involved in theft he had to testify on the account of why he hadn’t observed the incidences. He was optimistic that this matter would be resolved and was keen to know who did this outra-geous act.After his testimony, it was shown the incidences in ques-tion occurred when he was out of the country and didn’t have sufficient time to be apprised of the situation. Two junior officers who had been very hard working on the farm block and had helped turn the tide to a more prosperous one were found wanting of the crime.Major Mudenda was furious that these Officers he had trusted would go behind his back and steal ammunition from the base. He made sure they were punished severely for the act. He thought about retirement, after what happened that’s all he could think about. He later decided that he would settle on a farm.

Chicken and Veggie Wrap

Prep time: 35minCook time: 15 minServing: 5-10 people

“So the Lord said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.” But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord....”Genesis 6:7-8

This June we honor the fathers in our lives by making a delicious chicken and veggie wrap. It has a combination of a crisp yet moist and soft texture, yummy! Just as the rotti holds and protects all the ingredients that make the wrap, even more so is the role of a father. It’s such a pivotal and weighty role that calls fathers to be a Priest, Provider and Protector over the family. This of course can only be faithfully done through utter trust and obedience in God. It’s never too late to be a godly example of a father.Happy father’s Day! (Fathers to be, step dads, single dads, longing fathers....)

INGREDIENTSRotti/Chapati 1pktChicken fillet 1 kg (cut into strips) Small head of lettuce (washed thoroughly and cut into small pieces)Pickled cucumbers (optional) Knoor dressing (sweet chili/creamy Italian) or a creamy salad dress-ing of your choiceAvocado (sliced)Red onion (sliced thinly and soaked in vinegar)OilCajun spice1 TBSPPortuguese chicken 1 TBSP

Garlic powder ½ tspPaprika ½ tspSalt and pepper

METHOD1. Prep all ingredients.2. Marinate chicken strips with Cajun, Portuguese chicken, pa-

prika, garlic powder, 1 TBSP oil and salt and pepper to taste.3. In a preheat oven (200 degrees C), grill chicken for about 15

min. (Ensure its not dried out). Set aside to cool.4. Lay rotti flat, add a few lettuce leaves, pickles, chicken, avo-

cado, onion (drain the vinegar) and drizzle the salad dressing. 5. Roll up the rotti and serve warm. Enjoy!

Chef 1011. Do not overload the rotti with ingredients as this will make it difficult to roll up.2. Chicken can be marinated a day before.3. You can add chedar cheese/feta/more vegetables avail-able.4. This is a basic recipe, explore other ingredients and enjoy.

Farming is art



AGRISOCIAL

Chef MulayeMwendafilumba

Face book page: I think you stole my kitchenBlog: https://azambiankitchen.blogspot.com/

Cell number: 0979386584Email address: [email protected]

Services offered: cooking classes for all ages, finger snacks,

personal and outdoor catering and consultation.

16

Story Time

17

Ask Dr Lulu

1 2 3

6

7 8

9

10 1211 13

14 15

16 17 18

19 20 21

22

23 24

25 26

4 5L S

I

N

T

E

L

E TA A

A

E S

S

G

T

R

EPS A K

A

D E P T

A

E

R

A

P

L A Y E R

E

S

P TE U

N L

L

I

A

T O R

I N T E R

S

ET N D E

S

C

E

E

S

R

EVRE

M O N D E

Y

S

R

PAEL

E

D

SORP

S

E

A L T E R

R

S P O U E

E

A

L

S

EV

R E

Solution for Agri-Coop Anagram Puzzle 041

Agri-Coop Puzzle 042 Across1. Brook (6)4. Mimic Bird (6)8. Deciduous Tree (3)9. Planting Device (7)10.Denied (7)11.A Rodent (5)13.Prepared (5)15.Islands (5)20.Burn Remains (5)22.Yield (7)23.Artifitial Teeth (7)24.Devour (3)25.Reprimand (6)26.Blotting Out (6)

Down1. Young Oxen (6)2. Counselled (3)3. Defendant (7)5. Alert (5)6. Goal (6)7. Garden Tool (5)12.Lubricant (3)14.Chopping Tool (3)16.Bizarre (7)17.Male Goose (6)18.III (5)19.Monument (6)21.Smelt (5)24.Female Sheep (3)

1 2 3 4

7

98

10 11 12

13 14 15 16

17 18 19

20 21 22

2423

25 26

5 6

1 2 3

6

7 8

9

10 1211 13

14 15

16 17 18

19 20 21

22

23 24

25 26

4 5L S

I

N

T

E

L

E TA A

A

E S

S

G

T

R

EPS A K

A

D E P T

A

E

R

A

P

L A Y E R

E

S

P TE U

N L

L

I

A

T O R

I N T E R

S

ET N D E

S

C

E

E

S

R

EVRE

M O N D E

Y

S

R

PAEL

E

D

SORP

S

E

A L T E R

R

S P O U E

E

A

L

S

EV

R E

Solution for Agri-Coop Anagram Puzzle 041

Agri-Coop Puzzle 042 Across1. Brook (6)4. Mimic Bird (6)8. Deciduous Tree (3)9. Planting Device (7)10.Denied (7)11.A Rodent (5)13.Prepared (5)15.Islands (5)20.Burn Remains (5)22.Yield (7)23.Artifitial Teeth (7)24.Devour (3)25.Reprimand (6)26.Blotting Out (6)

Down1. Young Oxen (6)2. Counselled (3)3. Defendant (7)5. Alert (5)6. Goal (6)7. Garden Tool (5)12.Lubricant (3)14.Chopping Tool (3)16.Bizarre (7)17.Male Goose (6)18.III (5)19.Monument (6)21.Smelt (5)24.Female Sheep (3)

1 2 3 4

7

98

10 11 12

13 14 15 16

17 18 19

20 21 22

2423

25 26

5 6

Should we change our staple food from Maize to Cassava?Greg: I oppose this motion seeing to it that there is nothing wrong with our current staple food right now. Maize continues to bring with it a lot of benefits as it also leads to employment for those involved at various stages of its cultivation. Maize has many varieties making it affordable to all people in almost every climate.

Toliwe: I beg to differ with the views of the previous speaker and propose this motion because from time in memorial for the human race there is always a better way of doing things. For Zambia Cassava is the better way. Research shows that from a field where you get 8 bags of maize you can get 16 bags of cassava.In a study done on ducks based diet The results of this study suggest that both the cassava- and Maize- based diets are similar in their effect on meat-type ducks during the starter stage but toward the finisher stage, the cassava-based diet has a better influence on weight gain and carcass character-istics.Greg: Maize is better in the long run as it is easier to grow and manage in a 3 month window period as opposed to Cassava which takes very long in years. I believe for our national needs maize serves us better. In the fight to eradicate poverty Maize is a winner. Toliwe: I believe in the fight against poverty Cassava would be a game-changer and a clear winner. We would get more from the crop plus have a great advantage because it has many applications from food, beer to fuel. Moreover, though Maize may have a 3-month growth window it takes up too many resources to grow and is costly. Cassava takes care of its self because of its drought resistance. In short, there is little loss in cassava if any. Greg: It is said “If it’s not broken then don’t fix it” maize has been helpful to our nation. Many families have been sustained by this commodity. For us to simply abandon it would indeed be questionable. Toliwe: Maize might be beneficial yes however for innovativeness and poverty eradication we would require a more efficient product. We have already seen it been done in our nation in the Luapula corridor. If only we can learn from them and see why they have succeeded would we quickly and ef-fortlessly adopt this product as our national pride

WAIST PAIN REMEDY WITH-OUT_PAIN KILLERS LIKE IBUPROFEN PANADOL CAFEMOL

PINEAPPLE_LEAVES: Do not waste it any more, why complain of inflammatory pains and waist pain, make tea from it. It wipes all pains in seconds, heals ulcer and cough too. It nourishes the body and it is better than poisoning your system with ibrufen capsules, tramadol pain reliever that do endanger life and cause ulcer...Just boil and drink.

#Pineapple_Leaves_contains

• Calcium oxalate• Bromelin enzyme• Pectic substantial• Fiber• Cellulose• Pentose

#Heals_bleeding_from_NoseFor those of you who experience frequent bleeding from nose because of fatigue or stress, you can cure it by drinking boiled water pineapple leaves regularly. To make it a bit tastier, you can add some honey to it.

#Drives_away_weaknessPineapple leaves are also effective in curing weaknesses by providing energy and increasing blood circulation.

#Boosts_immunityPineapple leaves are also significant in boosting the immunity of our body by helping it fighting against disease causing microorganisms such as viruses, fungi, bacteria and so on.

#Controls_DiabetesPineapple, being rich in fiber, is a great food for diabetics and intake of pineapple leaves results in improved blood sugar, insulin, and lipid levels.

#Cures_DiarrheaNutritional content in pineapple leaves can cure your diarrhea diseases, especially for those of you who experience diarrhea due to poisoning.YOUR HEALTH IS OUR PRIORITY



Health & Wellness

Lets Debate thisLIKE OUR FACEBOOK PAGE FOR MORE HEALTH TIPS AND HOME REMEDIES fb: Health and wellness Cell: 0954 815 504

Contact Us Next to cosmopolitan Mall ,

plot no 379A, Lusaka. Zambia0977831674

we are suppliers of high quality Solar water pumps & Solar panels of all sizes

HOME INVESTMENT LIMITED

THE NEXT BEST GRAIN PROTACTANT IS HERE200grams of the powder treats 8* 50 kg bags

Get to you nearest Agro-Dealer and Buy

T:+260 967 586475, E: [email protected]@baya.com

BASF Zambia LTD, DG Park, 1 Chila Road, Kabulonga, Lusaka,Zambia.Phone: 0971006082



18

19ADVERTISEMENT AGRI-COOP NEWSPAPER, JUNE 2021 | VOLUME 146


Visit us today at our distribution centre at Plot No. 5259 Heavy Industrial Area, Mukwa Road, Lusaka

Call: 0975 982 383 | Email: [email protected]

For more information, contact:

Patience Goma

+260 975 98 2383 [email protected]

Chris Chomba, SGI

+260 966 117 635 / +260 976 300 467 [email protected]

Mwelwa Musengule, UBA

Relationship Manager+260 977 904 147Customer Fulfilment Centre+260 971779718 [email protected] Appro.tech Appro.tech

TMAppropriate Technology 11HP

SPECIFICATIONS

Model

Overall Dimensions (L×W×H)

Wheel Tread (mm)

Min. Ground Clearance (mm)

Min. use weight (kg)

Gear

Tyre

Speed (km/h)

Speed (km/h)

Reverse

Type

Rated Speed(r/min)

Fuel Consumption (g/kw*h)

Forward

Model

Rated Power(kw/hp)

Bore × Stroke (mm)

TMAppropriate Technology QL111 (11)

2260*930*1120

735-765

205

300

F6+R2

6.00-12

2.2, 3.15, 5.62, 8.37, 11.99, 21.41

Changzhou/Changfa

8.08/11

95*100

1.78, 6.77

Diesel Single cylinder; horizontal;4 stroke; water cooled

2200

less than 269.6


+260 975 98 2383

Patience Goma

[email protected]

+260 966 117 635 / +260 976 300 467

Chris Chomba, SGI

[email protected]

Relationship Manager+260 977 904 147

Customer Fulfilment Centre+260 971779718


[email protected]

SchweizerAppropriateTechnology Appro.tech Appro.tech


SPECIFICATIONS

Model


Wheel Tread (mm)



Gear

Tyre

Speed (km/h)

Speed (km/h)

Reverse

Type

Rated Speed(r/min)


Forward

Model

Rated Power(kw/hp)

Bore × Stroke (mm)


2260*930*1120

735-765

205

300

F6+R2

6.00-12

2.2, 3.15, 5.62, 8.37, 11.99, 21.41

Changzhou/Changfa

8.08/11

95*100

1.78, 6.77


2200

less than 269.6


+260 975 98 2383

Patience Goma

[email protected]

+260 966 117 635 / +260 976 300 467

Chris Chomba, SGI

[email protected]




[email protected]



SPECIFICATIONS

Model


Wheel Tread (mm)



Gear

Tyre

Speed (km/h)

Speed (km/h)

Reverse

Type

Rated Speed(r/min)


Forward

Model

Rated Power(kw/hp)

Bore × Stroke (mm)


2260*930*1120

735-765

205

300

F6+R2

6.00-12

2.2, 3.15, 5.62, 8.37, 11.99, 21.41

Changzhou/Changfa

8.08/11

95*100

1.78, 6.77


2200

less than 269.6


+260 975 98 2383

Patience Goma

[email protected]

+260 966 117 635 / +260 976 300 467

Chris Chomba, SGI

[email protected]




[email protected]



SPECIFICATIONS

Model


Wheel Tread (mm)



Gear

Tyre

Speed (km/h)

Speed (km/h)

Reverse

Type

Rated Speed(r/min)


Forward

Model

Rated Power(kw/hp)

Bore × Stroke (mm)


2260*930*1120

735-765

205

300

F6+R2

6.00-12

2.2, 3.15, 5.62, 8.37, 11.99, 21.41

Changzhou/Changfa

8.08/11

95*100

1.78, 6.77


2200

less than 269.6


+260 975 98 2383

Patience Goma

[email protected]

+260 966 117 635 / +260 976 300 467

Chris Chomba, SGI

[email protected]




[email protected]



SPECIFICATIONS

Model


Wheel Tread (mm)



Gear

Tyre

Speed (km/h)

Speed (km/h)

Reverse

Type

Rated Speed(r/min)


Forward

Model

Rated Power(kw/hp)

Bore × Stroke (mm)


2260*930*1120

735-765

205

300

F6+R2

6.00-12

2.2, 3.15, 5.62, 8.37, 11.99, 21.41

Changzhou/Changfa

8.08/11

95*100

1.78, 6.77


2200

less than 269.6


+260 975 98 2383

Patience Goma

[email protected]

+260 966 117 635 / +260 976 300 467

Chris Chomba, SGI

[email protected]




[email protected]



SPECIFICATIONS

Model


Wheel Tread (mm)



Gear

Tyre

Speed (km/h)

Speed (km/h)

Reverse

Type

Rated Speed(r/min)


Forward

Model

Rated Power(kw/hp)

Bore × Stroke (mm)


2260*930*1120

735-765

205

300

F6+R2

6.00-12

2.2, 3.15, 5.62, 8.37, 11.99, 21.41

Changzhou/Changfa

8.08/11

95*100

1.78, 6.77


2200

less than 269.6


+260 975 98 2383

Patience Goma

[email protected]

+260 966 117 635 / +260 976 300 467

Chris Chomba, SGI

[email protected]




[email protected]



SPECIFICATIONS

Model


Wheel Tread (mm)



Gear

Tyre

Speed (km/h)

Speed (km/h)

Reverse

Type

Rated Speed(r/min)


Forward

Model

Rated Power(kw/hp)

Bore × Stroke (mm)


2260*930*1120

735-765

205

300

F6+R2

6.00-12

2.2, 3.15, 5.62, 8.37, 11.99, 21.41

Changzhou/Changfa

8.08/11

95*100

1.78, 6.77


2200

less than 269.6


+260 975 98 2383

Patience Goma

[email protected]

+260 966 117 635 / +260 976 300 467

Chris Chomba, SGI

[email protected]




[email protected]



SPECIFICATIONS

Model


Wheel Tread (mm)



Gear

Tyre

Speed (km/h)

Speed (km/h)

Reverse

Type

Rated Speed(r/min)


Forward

Model

Rated Power(kw/hp)

Bore × Stroke (mm)


2260*930*1120

735-765

205

300

F6+R2

6.00-12

2.2, 3.15, 5.62, 8.37, 11.99, 21.41

Changzhou/Changfa

8.08/11

95*100

1.78, 6.77


2200

less than 269.6


+260 975 98 2383

Patience Goma

[email protected]

+260 966 117 635 / +260 976 300 467

Chris Chomba, SGI

[email protected]




[email protected]



SPECIFICATIONS

Model


Wheel Tread (mm)



Gear

Tyre

Speed (km/h)

Speed (km/h)

Reverse

Type

Rated Speed(r/min)


Forward

Model

Rated Power(kw/hp)

Bore × Stroke (mm)


2260*930*1120

735-765

205

300

F6+R2

6.00-12

2.2, 3.15, 5.62, 8.37, 11.99, 21.41

Changzhou/Changfa

8.08/11

95*100

1.78, 6.77


2200

less than 269.6


+260 975 98 2383

Patience Goma

[email protected]

+260 966 117 635 / +260 976 300 467

Chris Chomba, SGI

[email protected]




[email protected]



SPECIFICATIONS

Model


Wheel Tread (mm)



Gear

Tyre

Speed (km/h)

Speed (km/h)

Reverse

Type

Rated Speed(r/min)


Forward

Model

Rated Power(kw/hp)

Bore × Stroke (mm)


2260*930*1120

735-765

205

300

F6+R2

6.00-12

2.2, 3.15, 5.62, 8.37, 11.99, 21.41

Changzhou/Changfa

8.08/11

95*100

1.78, 6.77


2200

less than 269.6


+260 975 98 2383

Patience Goma

[email protected]

+260 966 117 635 / +260 976 300 467

Chris Chomba, SGI

[email protected]




[email protected]



SPECIFICATIONS

Model


Wheel Tread (mm)



Gear

Tyre

Speed (km/h)

Speed (km/h)

Reverse

Type

Rated Speed(r/min)


Forward

Model

Rated Power(kw/hp)

Bore × Stroke (mm)


2260*930*1120

735-765

205

300

F6+R2

6.00-12

2.2, 3.15, 5.62, 8.37, 11.99, 21.41

Changzhou/Changfa

8.08/11

95*100

1.78, 6.77


2200

less than 269.6


+260 975 98 2383

Patience Goma

[email protected]

+260 966 117 635 / +260 976 300 467

Chris Chomba, SGI

[email protected]




[email protected]



SPECIFICATIONS

Model


Wheel Tread (mm)



Gear

Tyre

Speed (km/h)

Speed (km/h)

Reverse

Type

Rated Speed(r/min)


Forward

Model

Rated Power(kw/hp)

Bore × Stroke (mm)


2260*930*1120

735-765

205

300

F6+R2

6.00-12

2.2, 3.15, 5.62, 8.37, 11.99, 21.41

Changzhou/Changfa

8.08/11

95*100

1.78, 6.77


2200

less than 269.6


+260 975 98 2383

Patience Goma

[email protected]

+260 966 117 635 / +260 976 300 467

Chris Chomba, SGI

[email protected]




[email protected]


ARE you a small scale farmer look-

ing to enhance ag-ricultural productiv-ity? Do you want to graduate from your current status to an emerging farmer?

Then look no further! Zambia is putting the hoe used by over 1.8 million small scale farmers for over 100 years into the muse-um, replacing it by walking tractors, disc ploughs, disc harrows, rakes, sprayers, seed drills, among other

technologies, thanks to Appropriate Tech-nologyTM, a depart-ment under Schweiz-er Agriculture.

We just imported 30 units of hand-held tractors ranging from 10, 12, 15, 18, and 35 horse power for rural mechanization.

The importance of this technology is that when the working speed of a hand-held machine is 10km/h, it can complete 0.2 hectares/h using a single furrow plough

for one hour, translat-ing into 1.6 hectares for 8 hours of work.

When working with a hand-held rotary tiller, it can complete 1.7 hectares/h, trans-lating into 13.6 hect-ares for 8 hours of work.

We are determined to deploy on aver-age, 11,900 to 15,500 horse power low-cost handheld tractors per province through-out the country and these can easily be operated by women.

ENCOURAGING THE MECHANIZATION OF SMALL HOLDERS IN ZAMBIA

APPROPRIATE TECHNOLOGYTM

AGRICULTURE MECHANIZATION, IMPROVED HYPRID SEED FOR POVERTY ALLEVIATION AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT

The Zambian econ-omy is currently operating in a very challenging macro-economic environ-

ment. In 2020, growth was projected to contract by 4.2 percent, the first recession in over two decades, mainly on account of the adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.The agriculture sector has exhibited low growth but high volatility. The share of agri-culture has shrunk from 9.4 percent of GDP in 2010 to 5.0 percent in 2015 and 3.2 per-cent of 2019. With the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, the country has become increas-ingly vulnerable to supply chain disruptions since it remains highly dependent on

imports.According to Zambia’s Econom-ic Recovery Programme (ERP) launched last year, the anchor sectors during the period 2020-2023 will be agriculture, mining and manufacturing. Agriculture and manufacturing not only have the strongest backward and forward linkages, but also account for a significant share of the employed population. Agriculture will continue to be a key driver of growth and job creation for the Zambian economy. To this end, the government will continue im-plementing policies to enhance production and productiv-ity in the crops, fisheries and livestock sub-sectors. The focus will be to transform the sector to promote exports by encour-

aging private sector participa-tion and promotion of climate resilient agricultural practices According to the ERP, growth slowed, averaging 3 percent between 2017 and 2019. This was less than half the growth of 6.5 percent recorded dur-ing the previous decade. The reduction in growth was at the back of a slowdown in global economic activity that resulted in low copper prices.Restoration of growth and achievement of economic diversification will be anchored on agriculture, mining and manufacturing. To enable this growth, these anchor indus-tries will be supported by investments in the energy, In-formation and Communication Technology (ICT) and financial

sectors.In Zambia as in many other African countries, smallholder farmers are key to the revival of the agriculture sector be-cause more than 70 percent of operate on less than two sec-tors and mostly rely on hoes to till the land. This has inhibited their growth as many do not realize as much as 25 percent of their potential yields. To unlock this potential, govern-ments and the private sector have turned to mechanization.One of the key actions that Zambia plans to take by next year is to promote farm power and mechanization for small holder farmers through a line of credit. Apart from giving farmers access to appropri-ate technology at reasonable

cost, this opens a window of opportunity to commercialize farming, leading to increased agricultural production and productivity as well as extra income through hiring out of equipment.Smart agriculture is the new phrase that should be at the back of the mind of very small scale farmer if development is to take place. It entails the use of a technological ad-vancement that guarantees an increase in productivity at an affordable production cost. Zambian private firm Schwei-zwer Agriculture, in their Ap-propriate Technology Mecha-nization Department places this concept as top priority in fostering small scale agricultur-al development. The company is already implementing a new small-mechanization pilot initiative launched in February to equip farmers with the busi-ness and technical skills they need to provide mechanization services to rural districts of Zambia.Schweizer is also providing asset financing from the equity finance managed by Aid for Trade-a product of Kachi Agri Micro Finance (KAMF) in col-laboration with United Bank for Africa (UBA) and the Zambia Agriculture Research Institute (ZARI), who are supporting the asset financing, appropriate technology adoption and tech-nical training respectively.Anchored on a strong business model, many farmer groups will be encouraged to sign up to become service providers and invested an initial deposit of $500 to $1, 500 to access the mechanization package comprising a two-wheel tractor and trailer, a direct planter and a maize cob sheller. Through a “lease-to-own” credit facility, eligible service providers will have 24 months to pay the remaining balance for the set of equipment.This approach addresses re-payment challenges in past in-terventions, where equipment was distributed without a firm commitment from the service providers and without putting in enough effort to establish a viable business.Appropriate Technology is consulting with Zambia Agricul-ture Research Institute, Seed Control and Certification Insti-tute to encourage smallholder farmers in Zambia by exposing them to the benefits of com-bining small scale mechaniza-tion with conservation farming systems to improve productiv-ity – land preparation, planting and harvesting – to achieve higher yields while reduc-ing production costs. Besides making farming tasks more efficient for individuals, this set of equipment can be used to provide critical services to other farmers in their wards.

The two-wheel tractors under the pilot project can have vari-ous implements attached to it for services such as planting, transportation and shelling. It can also be used to run other important implements such as water pumps, mills or thresh-ers. Replacing a hoe with small scale mechanization such as two- wheeled tractors will make farming a more viable source of income for small scale farmers.This initiative brings with it several benefits. It reduces health hazards due to too much labour drudgery and saves time. It also supplements human power several folds for heavy jobs, encourages small scale farmers to grow into large scale farmers and increase productivity. This ultimately results into poverty reductionWith the introduction of the two-wheeled tractors, agri-business will be a venture for most of the small scale farmers which will consequently result into rural economic develop-ment as it is a source of em-ployment and leads to poverty reduction.Owning the two-wheel tractors by various cooperatives in dif-ferent rural localities is a good initiative because it means that other than the use of cultivat-ing their fields the machines can also be utilized as an empowerment scheme in their communities by lending them out to fellow community members at a fee. This too will create employment for the youths. It is also worth mentioning that agriculture mechanization coupled with the use of im-proved hybrid seed will result in much development because these seeds are easier and faster to grow, adapt better to stress and produce plants with larger higher yields, are dis-ease resistant and have longer shelf life.This could help Zambia meet its target to attain real GDP growth rate of above 3 percent by 2022, reduce the fiscal defi-cit to no more than 4.9 percent of GDP by 2023, increase domestic revenue to not less than an average of 18 percent of GDP over the period 2021 to 2023, reduce and sustain infla-tion within single digit by end 2022 and raise international reserves to at least 3 months of import cover by 2023.



K10

Low cotton price discouraging - CBZ

Tropical

Join Our Group Power The World

0979890084

Chinsali Receives InputsBy SEBASTIAN CHIPAKO

CHINSALI district has started receiv-ing farming inputs for the 2021/2022 Farmers Input Sup-

port Programme (FISP) farming season.Chinsali District Marketing Development Officer, Chewe Chama revealed that the district has so far received three thou-sand, four hundred and eighty

by fifty kilogramme bags of D compound fertilizer translating into one hundred and seventy-four metric tonnes.Ms. Chama added that more fer-tilizer is expected in the district soon under Neria’s investment who have continued as suppli-ers for the coming FISP farming season.She explained that deposits of farmer contribution will start early with distribution expected to be done much earlier than

last farming season.The Marketing devel-opment officer has since appealed to the benefitting farming community in the dis-trict to prepare their farmer contribution and be ready when deposits open up.Ms.Chama disclosed that it will be impor-tant for benefiting cooperators to work

JASCOOL SOLARCOMPANY

enjoy life by using solar

Located on Lusaka Downtown MallShop No 12 upstairs and Kasumbalesa

Call; 0978436572 or 0976343117Email: [email protected]

together and ensure money is ready when deposits are flagged off.She explained that the minis-try of agriculture is currently screening the beneficiary farmer register in readiness for the flagging off of deposits.Ms. Chama has further warned farmers not to sell the inputs under FISP as this would be going against gov-ernment’s efforts of helping the small scale poor but viable farmers.She said the ministry will make sure those caught are punished therefore farmers should not be found on the wrong side of the law.Ms.Chama revealed that Chin-sali district has eight thousand four hundred and sixty-six beneficiaries under the gov-ernment subsidized FISP.

20

Farmers News, all Seasons.

AGRI -COOP

c alif or n bev eg s lt d. download e-copies - www

Documents