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Business Reporter
Local cotton company, Southern Cotton, has said it is targeting to process up to 2 million kilogrammes of cotton, ahead of the white gold’s marketing season, which is expected to open this month.
Southern Cotton contracted a record 60 000 farmers last season after providing growers with inputs.
The move to support cotton growers compliments the Presidential Inputs Scheme which was introduced by Government to support the cotton industry that tottered on the brink of collapse a few years ago.
In an interview during a tour of cotton growers contracted by Southern Cotton in Shamva last week, the company’s managing director Caos Nzenze, said his firm is targeting its highest output in five years.
“In terms of production, this is going to be our best year.
“After providing inputs to 60 000 farmers in all the country’s cotton growing districts, we are targeting 20 000 tonnes.
“The yield per hectare is going to be high, at about 800 kilogrammes per hectare. This year is a big jump from the previous season when we managed just 5, 5 million kilogrammes, which was mainly due to the bad drought,” he said.
Mr Nzenze said the increased cotton output will result in positive spin-offs for the ginning industry as well as other sectors that feed from cotton growers.
“As you may know, cotton seed is one of the raw materials used in the manufacture of cooking oil, while some of the by-products of cotton also go to livestock feeding. So these industries will also benefit.
“There is also a lot of employment that is going to be created in our own industry. We are expecting to create over 1 000 direct jobs during the marketing season while more jobs will be created downstream.
“We are ready to buy the cotton. We are expecting the Agricultural Marketing Authority to announce the dates and we will immediately deploy our people on the ground.”
Mr Nzenze implored Government to consider subsidising the buying of cotton, as prices of the white gold have plummeted internationally due to Covid-19.
“As an industry, there is no doubt that cotton is on the rebound but we also need Government support. The global prices of cotton have gone down worryingly due to Covid-19.
“We are hoping that once the marketing season is announced, Government will be able to offer a subsidy to pay farmers so that growers can get a good price. The prices being offered internationally are very low. So there is need to support the farmers further so that they can be inspired to go back into the fields next season.”
Cotton farmers who spoke to this publication were upbeat about the recovery of the industry.
“The previous years have been hard, but we are seeing that the future is now brighter. We received inputs from Southern Cotton and the crop was far better this season compared to last year,” said Mrs Wadzanai Masango a grower in Shamva.
Another cotton grower, Mr Tashinga Gomo said the hybrid variety seed had worked wonders for his crop.
Zimbabwe’s cotton industry had virtually collapsed when production declined to 28 000 tonnes in 2015, the lowest in more than two decades after farmers abandoned the crop due to low producer prices.
During that period, Cargill, which was one of the country’s largest cotton producers closed its business citing viability challenges, leading Southern Cotton to take over the company.
Online Reporter