There has been high demand for Tuli breeding material from South Africa’s neighbours over the past two years. In 2016, five stud bulls and ten heifers were exported to Namibia, while more than 100 female animals were exported to Zimbabwe. At two previous Tuli auctions, another four stud bulls and…
The uptake of insurance by Zambian smallholder farmers against threats to their crop and livestock is rising. Industry sources say more than 60 000 farmers took out policies during the 2016/’17 farming season. State-owned ZSIC General Insurance confirmed insuring 30 000 farmers countrywide against fire and natural disasters, while other…
Zambian President Edgar Lungu says chiefs must not abuse their role by selling land to foreigners at the expense of Zambians. “The displacing of subjects by selling vast chunks of land to foreign investors must stop,” Lungu told the House of Chiefs that serves as the country’s traditional parliament. Lungu’s…
Zambian soya bean growers are incensed by the low price for their crop this season. It is selling at K100 per 50kg bag. Irate farmers are now looking at exporting their crop or using it as stock feed to mitigate the poor market conditions. A posting on Zambia’s influential small-scale…
Crop rotation systems, in which maize is alternated with legumes, improve soil quality and reduce production losses. Monoculture, or planting the same crop in a field season after season, leads to deprived soil and reduced yields. It’s our old friend common sense in the field again. The weather, government policy…
An exciting new mobile app, called the Maano Virtual Farmers’ Market, is under trial in Zambia to enable rural smallholder farmers to connect with buyers. Maano was developed by the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP). According to a co-founder and WFP’s Maano manager, Evin Joyce, the app was developed…
