BY MTHANDAZO NYONI
ZIMBABWE’S pork value chain is facing multiple challenges including poor nutrition and husbandry skills, lack of good quality breeds among others, that needed to be addressed as a matter of urgency.
In its latest update, Livestock and Meat Advisory Council (Lmac) said that the local value chain was facing viability challenges that should be addressed to make it vibrant.
“The pork value chain is facing a multitude of challenges including poor nutrition and husbandry skills, lack of good quality breeds, disease and poor access to lucrative markets,” Lmac said.
In a bid to address these challenges, the Zimbabwe Agricultural Growth Programme (ZAGP) has since launched a US$45 million pig and goat production project aimed at boosting household food, nutrition and income of smallholder farmers. The programme is spearheaded by Action Aid under ZAGP’s Value Chain Alliance for Livestock Upgrading and Empowerment (Value) programme.
“Value seeks to build the capacity of smallholder farmers to improve their goat and pig breeds and access viable markets in partnership with private sector players,” the council said. Recently, the Pig Producers Association of Zimbabwe held its annual symposium to discuss the challenges faced by farmers.
PIB director Andrew Shoniwa reportedly provided an update on pig production in the smallholder sector and noted that 40 000 sows are owned by smallholder farmers out of the national herd of 57 000.
Producers also discussed about pig nutrition and alternative food sources, at a time the cost of stockfeed continues to increase. Pig diseases and African Swine Fever (ASF) were also under the spotlight and all participants were reminded about the regulations governing ASF and mandatory fencing requirements.
