August 13, 2013

 

 

In this year's marketing season, Cargill Zambia has embarked on diversification and projects to buy about 80,000 tonnes of corn from small-holder farmers.

 

The firm, which has been active in Zambia since 2006 with more than 2000 employees, has staked more than ZMW445 million (US$82 million) in support of its diversification programme from cotton to corn and soy.

 

Cargill Zambia general manager Lezanne van Zyl said the firm had set aside US$89 million for the diversification exercise to support the cultivation of corn and soy among the cotton farmers.

 

Van Zyl said in an interview in Lusaka that currently, more than 60,000 farmers in Eastern, Muchinga and Central provinces were being supported in the cultivation of cotton.

 

"We now want to extend the support to other crops particularly corn and soy," said van Zyl, who was flanked by Cargill project manager, Emmanuel Mbewe.

 

In supporting crop diversification among the cotton farmers, Cargill wants to help improve in the food security at household level and ensure that the farmers adequately benefited from their agricultural activities.

 

She said Cargill would provide the agricultural input to the farmers who would choose what to plant, saying the firm wanted to give farmers chance to make their own decisions.

 

Van Zyl said the farmers would decide whether to use the fertiliser which would be supplied to them on cotton, corn or soy and how much of each of the three crops would be grown.

 

On corn marketing exercise, van Zyl said Cargill purchased 30,000 tonnes of corn from the produce of 2011-12 farming season but this season projects to double the figure to 60,000 tonnes.

 

She said the firm would sell 80% of the total corn purchase to the local millers around the country, while the rest was being targeted for the export market, depending on the government corn export rules.

 

"We have adequate storage capacity, so we will store the corn for the local millers and supply to them as they need it. We are hoping to export 20% of the total amount of corn we will buy this season," she said.

 

Cargill is an international producer and marketer of food, agro and industrial products which was founded in 1865 and operates in 65 countries worldwide.