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Participants at last year’s symposium

The Pig Producers Association of Zimbabwe, in partnership with the Stockfeed Manufacturers Association and the Zimbabwe Agricultural Society, proudly announce the Pig Symposium 2017.

The Zimbabwe Poultry Association, which together with PPAZ and the Stockfeed Manufacturers Association, were due to convene their Annual Symposium on June 29, have been advised against participating in the event due to the outbreak of Avian Influenza.

The event has therefore been restructured for pig producers and all producers are cordially invited to attend. The theme of the Symposium is Economic Empowerment through Pig Production and takes place on Thursday June 29, 2017 at the Andy Millar Hall, Exhibition Park, Samora Machel Avenue.

The cost is $10 per person and includes teas and a hot lunch. Tickets are available from the office in Exhibition Park or at the entrance door on the day. The event starts at 9.00am with tea and registration, followed by the keynote address and official opening. The topic of Inclusive Economic Empowerment Models in Pig Production will be explored as there are many finance schemes and funding becoming available to develop the pig value chain.

The experiences of the Sable Foods– Mhondoro Ngezi Chegutu Community Share Scheme will then be presented. Although this share scheme has been created for chicken producers and outgrowers, it is very successful and many lessons have been learned that will be applicable to implementing such schemes for pig producers.

The Pig Industry Board (PIB) in conjunction with PPAZ have been discussing for many months the establishment of pig producer societies and the smallholder pilot project in Goromonzi is taking shape, with three cluster groups now identified in the Goromonzi, Ruwa, Bromley area, with the assistance of the Department of Livestock Production and Development.

The first group meets in Bromley today. To build sustainable smallholder production, the value chain approach will be adopted and PIB will provide extension and genetics.

A suitable economic model for small-scale pig production will also be drawn up, as a basis for development and funding of such production, through various initiatives such as the EU funded Zimbabwe Agricultural Growth Programme and Community Share Ownership projects.

This will be based on a five-year production cycle, to realize returns on investment, as the current three-year financing offered by financial institutions is too short for the pig production cycle and the setting up of viable pig projects.

These models will be presented and discussed at the Symposium.

After a hot lunch, the focus will be on Responding to Efforts to Curb the Use of Antibiotics in Non-Ruminant Production and will be presented by Dr Gilfillan from Kemin, South Africa.

Zimbabwe is part of the Global Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) to manage the use of antibiotics and slow down the emergence of antibiotic resistance.

Livestock producers will play a key role in the National AMR Action Plan which Zimbabwe is developing in a programme co-ordinated by the Food and Agriculture Organisation.

There is growing global concern about Antimicrobial Resistance and the implications on human and animal health, as well as the economic and environmental cost of antibiotic failure.

AMR is a naturally occurring process which arises when a microbe (such as bacteria, fungi or virus), mutates and becomes resistant to the antibiotics, antifungals or antivirals used to treat it.

AMR is being accelerated by overuse, misuse and abuse of antibiotics today. Stakeholders across the spectrum – representing human health, the pharmaceutical industry, veterinary science, the livestock industry, the environment and others are collectively drawing up Zimbabwe’s National AMR Action Plan.

Dr Chihora, a consultant animal nutritionist, will make a presentation about Optimising Use of Home Grown Feed Resources in Pig Production. This will be a very interesting and topical discussion, especially as the cost of stockfeed is the major expense in production costs in a pig enterprise.

The event will close with the 7th Annual General Meeting of the Pig Producers Association of Zimbabwe. Various exhibitors will also be displaying their products and services to the pig sector and all members of the public who are interested in pig production and aspiring pig producers are very welcome to attend.

Networking opportunities also exist to meet established producers and to connect with service providers.

All teas and the hot lunch are included in the charge of $10 per person.