Business is about relationships. Each one is different and has its own specific requirements. For a farmer, the most important relationship is the one with the people who sell his produce: They play a key role in the success of his marketing plans. In simpler times, it was said that…
Good business relationships based on trust are essential, especially if you’re using a market agent. The principles below apply to any business relationship, but they’re slightly different when marketing fresh produce. Certain factors kick in right away when your market agent receives a consignment of produce from you, and they…
The relationships you build with your export agent and other key role-players become the oil that makes the exporting engine work smoothly. This is probably the most important part of exporting fresh produce. Your export agent is your key player, the person with whom you will have the most dealings…
Exporting is the ultimate marketing aim for any serious fruit or vegetable farmer, but it needs time, high standards, commitment and good management.* Many people encourage new farmers to export because it is seen as a lucrative marketing option. But they say this without really understanding what’s needed to be…
We’ve already talked about farm gate sales, local area sales, factory contracts and fresh produce markets. Here, the subject is supplying direct to supermarkets or other buyers. Farmers often ask me which supermarket to supply. My first question to them is, “What’s the quality of your product, and how much…
We’ve seen that successful fresh produce marketing is a lot like going to school… starting at the bottom and working through the grades, gaining knowledge and experience as we go. In this article we look at the next important ‘grade’. The step up from the previous marketing options we covered…
Any serious farmer wants to get the best and most out of every production unit. Here 3 of marketing choices for a fresh produce farmer. Marketing fruit and vege¬tables is a bit like going to school… you have to start at the bottom and work your way up to “qualify”…
With only a week before the close of the maize marketing season, Zambian farmers are selling their crop in panic. This while the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) said it won’t extend grain buying beyond the end of the month, when the marketing season closes. A survey conducted by Africanfarming.com showed…
Zambian President Edgar Lungu says he will not dictate the review of the current price of K60/50kg being offered by the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) for white maize, but will consult his cabinet to come up with an amicable solution. “I have heard the cry of stakeholders over the price of maize…
It remains a mystery why more African farmers are not breeding the native African Guinea fowl. They are hardy, low on cost, and in demand. Farmer Humphrey Milanzi makes best use of these bords. Guinea fowl are Gallinaceous birds like chickens and turkeys. Members of the order Numididae, they are…
Zambia National Farmers’ Union (ZNFU) president Jervis Zimba is cautioning that farmers will dump maize cultivation in the next farming season. His warning comes as the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) insists that its offer of K60/50kg for maize is final. “This will have dire consequences for national food security as…
The Famine Early Warning System Network (FEWSNET) predicts severe food insecurity in parts of Zambia. Economists also warn against maize scarcity and high prices in the long-term, following this year’s chaotic grain marketing season. FEWSNET linked the looming food insecurity to slower than usual local and regional demand coupled with…
Government’s silence on the floor price of maize has created turmoil among farmers. The marketing season opens tomorrow. Government also maintains that the 10% export duty for raw maize will not be waived. Random interviews conducted by Africanfarming.com showed that farmers are still relying on the Food Reserve Agency (FRA)…
Thirteen pig farmers from the KwaZulu-Natal province in South Africa have successfully shaken off the stranglehold of rising costs and a stagnating income for the last 13 years by marketing their produce jointly and reducing their risks. Even although South African pig farmers have been able to improve their productivity…
Zambia’s state-owned grain buying company, the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) is facing a financial crisis. This created concerns about its readiness for the marketing season which opens on June 1. Executive Director Chola Kafwabulula told a Parliamentary Committee on Estimates the cash shortage is hampering operations. “We need additional funding…
When you meet Miyanda Maimbo Katiwa, you understand why this veritable pioneer of Zambia’s job recruitment industry is making waves in farming. She charges around her farm with unrestrained enthusiasm, showing off her prized products with obvious pride. One minute she is explaining the market realities of farming, the next…
Michael Cordes, marketing specialist from South Africa, talks about important lessons he learnt from the late Bertie van Zyl of ZZ2 farming, probably the biggest field-grown tomato operation in the southern hemisphere. MAKING THE RIGHT CHOICES Smallholder farmers are always on the lookout for opportunities to grow and expand their…
Good relationships are enormously important to farmers, but the most important relationship is the one the farmer has with those who sell his produce. They play a key role in the success of his marketing plans. Where deals were sealed with handshakes in the past, in today’s faster, more demanding…