Make use of information technology, farmers urged

Farming in Zimbabwe is characterised by very low technological advancements compared to some countries in the region.
In an interview, the executive director of ZFU Mr Paul Zakariya said:
“There is need for computerisation of agriculture whereby farming can be controlled by the use of computers just like any other industry in Zimbabwe.
“This means that farmers have to be trained to make their own raw materials as well as research on agricultural information for better crop and animal production.”
He encouraged farmers to form associations in order to attract funding as well as make it easy for farmers to generate cash.
“Training of farmers on making their own stock feeds can yield better results if they are part of associations which will give them economies of scale,” he said.
Most farmers were struggling to purchase inputs such as stockfeeds, seed and fertilisers.
Mr Paul Zakariya said it was true that stockfeeds were expensive hence the need to come up with initiatives to supplement for what farmers can’t access.
“The raw materials for manufacturing of stock feeds are mainly soya beans and maize and these are very expensive and we are not able to meet the demand for the raw materials locally.
“The stock feeds manufacturers are importing Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) free soya beans and maize outside the region, with related costs (such as transport), for example from India because the regional sources of the GMO-free are running out,” he said.
He said wheat bran was another raw material but there was a shortage locally and stock feed manufacturers were importing it from Malawi.
“Millers and bakeries are importing processed flour which means bran is not available on the market.              This is imported at $85 per tonne more than would be the cost if it were produced locally.
“All these factors together will drive the prices of sock feeds higher making it difficult for the already ailing farmers to adapt,” Mr Zakariya said.
He said sunflower cake, cotton seed cake, soya cake could be substitutes, but there would be problems with the infrastructure and technology for processing which makes it unviable for small scale production.
“Substandard feeds will not be effective and will be expensive in the end because of poor productivity, so farmers have to be careful when making home-made feed or buying cheap feeds.”
He said ZFU was in the process of establishing information centres in different farming provinces to ensure farmers get vital information on production.
“Farmers should have access to information on agricultural production. They should know where to get inputs, financial facilities, commodity prices on the market and this can be easily obtained at information centres.
“We should also have electronic media facilities so that farmers can access information,” he said.