The traditional way of cattle ranching, in which animals are kept as a sign of wealth, is now a thing of the past in the Chilonga communal lands in Chiredzi district.
by Regerai Tukutuku
Sugar milling giant Tongaat Hulett has helped the local community set up a cattle feedlot at a cost of $ 150,000 that is set to transform cattle production in the area.
As part of the company’s social responsibility to empower the communities in which it operates , the feedlot can accommodate 200 cattle and will also act as a breeding centre where scientific methods of cattle production like artificial insemination will be undertaken. Modern bulls have been provided by the company and community members have been equipped with skills in livestock production and management.
Naison Mushavi’s dream of producing cattle for sale has finally come to be true following the establishment of the feed lot. Like most rural cattle producers, Mushavi had been keeping his 20head of cattle for prestige with very little benefits.
Eye opener
He used them for draught power but never used to sell any of his livestock for income – even when his children were being turned away from school for failing to pay school fees.
“This is an eye opener, “said Mushavi. “We are now able to feed our cattle and sell them for income. Our children are n able to go for classes undisturbed because we are now able to pay school fees from the proceeds realised for the sale of these cattle. We used to keep livestock for prestige and as an indicator of wealth. We never had been made aware of commercial livestock production.”
He said despite having a good number of cattle they never used to slaughter any for family consumption but only when they were sick or very old. “With this feedlot we are now producing cattle for sale and to us it is like a form of employment where we are realising income monthly and even weekly,” he said.
A well-fed beast can fetch as much as $2,000 or more.
Butchery
The Chilonga cattle fattening project is set to benefit thousands of women, most of them widows, who are now bread winners in their families.
Monica Mugudu, 67, actually wept for joy when the feedlot was officially handed over to the community. A widow, she cares for over 10 children including her grandchildren. Her husband died 10 years ago, but left her over 30 head of cattle.
“I am now able to feed my grandchildren and if all goes well I am thinking of establishing a butchery in the next two months where I will specialise in selling beef. Every month on average I get between $1,000- $1,500,”she said.
“Apart from cattle feeding we are also into cattle breeding and now I boast of a herd of 55 cattle, but 10 of them are calves. My husband left behind 30 cattle but then I was not benefitting much from the livestock apart from draught power and meat if any of them got sick or died. We never slaughtered cattle to just eat,” she said.
Tongaat Hulett managing director Sydney Mutsambiwa said the project was set to transform the Chilonga communal lands into a cattle breeding zone. “We realised the importance of commercial cattle production and how villagers could be assisted to see the importance of cattle production,” he said. “Our role was to provide funding for the construction of the feedlot and the provision of skills to farmers on how to produce and manage livestock.”
Paddy Zhanda the deputy minister of Agriculture Mechanisation and Irrigation development responsible for livestock said the community should fully utilise the feedlot. “We would want to see cattle producers leading by example slaughtering for consumption the fattest cattle and also selling the livestock to earn a living,” he said.
The minister attacked cattle buyers who he said were always short-changing farmers. Zhanda cited private abattoirs in particular, which he said were reaping where they did not sow by abusing livestock producers.
Auction system
He called for a cattle auction system to be introduced to ensure that farmers got maximum benefits from their livestock.
“The current cattle selling system is disorderly and does not favour the farmer,” said Zhanda. “We have to introduce the cattle auction system where the farmer has good bargaining power because different cattle buyers would be brought together.”
The deputy minister said Masvingo province alone had over 1 million cattle and admitted that government was just paying lip service to cattle production, which was a critical component of the economy.
The Chilonga feedlot has inspired other villagers in Chiredzi and plans are underway to establish similar projects at Rupangwana, Chikombedzi and Chingele - all in the semi-arid region.
Because the area falls under agricultural region five where there is little rainfall, crop farming has proved to be a failure for over the years. This has left cattle farming as the only viable agricultural activity in the area, in addition to horticulture – which requires high input costs.
Chiredzi central Member of Parliament Denford Masiya said cattle production remains a potentially big business in the area. “Every homestead in this constituency has some cattle but our challenge had been how to use the livestock to get income,”he said.
“Several people here still keep cattle as a sign of wealth but with the establishment of feedlots in different parts of the area I am sure that Chiredzi is soon going to be the cattle producing and breeding hub of the country,” he said.