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Government has been called to intervene and assist the vulnerable who are finding it difficult to buy seed and fertiliser so that farmers can access inputs and plant on time.

Business Reporter
The seed industry has expressed confidence about Zimbabwe’s seed supply for the 2013/2014 summer cropping season as all  provinces have received seed although the uptake has been slow.
Sadc climate experts have predicted normal to above normal rains for the season which is bound to boost yields following a poor rainy season in several areas that resulted in low yields last season.

The Seed Trade Association last month said seed houses were distributing a total of 56 000 tonnes of maize seed to outlets across the country.
Of the 56 000 tonnes, 52 000 tonnes was hybrid seed while 4 000 was open-pollinated maize seed varieties. There was also 500 tonnes of white sorghum seed.

Pioneer Hi-bred Zimbabwe managing director Mr Daniel Myres said enough seed had been distributed across the country to dealers.
“Uptake of seed has been slow because of the depressed economy; there is not enough money around for farmers to buy seed,” he said.
He said Government should intervene and assist the vulnerable who are finding it difficult to buy seed and fertiliser so that farmers can access inputs and plant on time.

Seed Co spokesperson Ms Majorie Mutemererwa said the company was ready for the season and had dispatched various seed varieties for farmers to choose from. She urged farmers to be vigilant by knowing the maize seed variety that was suitable for their ecological region.
“Seed Co varieties are researched, bred, produced and processed locally to cater for the main natural regions in Zimbabwe. Farmers are therefore urged to approach their local Seed Co agronomists and Agritex officials to get the best agronomical advice,” she said.
She said the company had deployed agronomists across the country to assist farmers with the necessary information.

Pannar Seeds managing director Mr Temba Nkatazo said they had already distributed seed to all the provinces but the uptake by farmers had been slow as farmers were reluctant to buy seed before the beginning of the rainy season.

“Seed has been distributed across the country but the uptake has been very slow. Farmers do not want to buy seed before the rains come, they usually wait for the rains and then hurry to buy seed and this usually means we get very busy when the rains start falling in earnest,” he said.

He said the company had recorded a boost in sales with the rains that had fallen across the country in the past few days.
Mr Nkatazo added that pricing of seed had been very reasonable this season considering that Zimbabwean seed was among the cheapest in the region and most farmers would be able to afford it.

A survey revealed that seed and fertilisers were now readily available in retail outlets with each seed house having representatives to assist farmers to buy the correct variety for their areas. A 10 kilogramme pack of seed is selling at between US$22 and US$30, down from last year’s figure of between US$23 and US$28 and fertiliser costs US$30 to US$38 per 50 kg bag.

Fertiliser manufacturers have also said they had enough quantities in stock for the season although the industry has been crippled by power shortages and Government debts. Government owes fertiliser companies more than US$32 million in unpaid debts.

Last week, banks expressed their commitment to funding the summer crop as they set aside a total of US$720 million for the season. In addition to supporting maize farming, the funds were expected to also support tobacco, cotton, horticulture and sugar cane production.
However, farmers expressed dissatisfaction with the amount offered by the banking industry saying it was not enough. They said the agriculture sector needed between US$2 billion to US$3 billion to run smoothly.