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Joseph Madzimure Senior Reporter
GOVERNMENT has announced the 2020 pre-planting winter wheat producer price of ZW$14 143, 73 per tonne for Grade A, with other grades fetching ZW$11 786, 44.

Also, the floor price for a tonne of soya beans for the 2019-20 farming season has been set at ZW$12 833 per tonne.

The producer prices are reflective of the current economic situation and are expected to help farmers to execute their agricultural business.

Briefing the media during her brief of decisions made by Cabinet in Harare yesterday, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Monica Mutsvangwa said the Cabinet considered the 2020 winter wheat pre-planting price and the 2019-2020 soya bean producer floor prices.

“Cabinet considered the 2020 winter wheat pre-planting price and the 2019-2020 soya bean producer floor prices as presented by the Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Water and Rural Resettlement Perrance Shiri on behalf of the chair of the Cabinet Committee on Food Security and Nutrition and approved as follows; that the pre-planting winter wheat producer floor price be pegged at ZW$11 786, 44 per tonne at a margin of 20 percent, assuming a yield of four tonnes per hectare; and the premium price for grade A wheat be set at ZW$14 143, 73 which is 20 percent above the wheat producer floor price,” said Minister Mutsvangwa.

The minister also said that Cabinet had approved the price of ZW$12 833 per tonne for soya beans.

“The soya bean floor price be set at ZW$12 833 per tonne at a 20 percent margin, assuming a yield of two metric tonnes per hectare.

“That, going forward, the cost build-up plus margin model should be used in the determination of producer prices.

The Cabinet also encouraged farmers to increase the growing of sesame and sunflowers.

“The growing of sesame and sunflower should be promoted to increase feedstock for cooking oil production and as an import substitution strategy,” said the minister.

Over the years Zimbabwe has been a net wheat importer and Government has since included wheat under Command Agriculture to boost production.

Under the programme, wheat farmers received input support that included seed, fertilisers and herbicides, among others.

The country requires 460 000 tonnes of wheat every year to avoid bread shortages and current efforts are expected to progressively increase production to wipe out the deficit.

This is part of a raft of measures Government is taking to boost national food security, which also include importation of maize to ensure a steady a supply of bread and other bakery products.