THE 2014/2015 cropping season has kicked off with agriculture stakeholders confident and upbeat that fortunes will change with increased hectarage and improved yields.
However, the same cannot be said for farmers in cotton growing areas as the production of the white gold has since lost its lustre with prospects of turning around the sector remaining bleak.
For the past seasons, cotton growers were left a disgruntled lot compared to their counterparts growing tobacco, who have been smiling all the way to the bank.
The past marketing seasons of the crop have been marred by price disputes between farmers and ginners with the former arguing that the prices offered by the latter were not viable.
Contractors have also blamed farmers for side marketing.
These disputes have negatively affected the fortunes of the crop’s growers and future output levels.
Cotton is mostly grown in the low-veld with cotton growing areas including Gokwe, Muzarabani, Guruve, Mhondoro and Sanyati.
Analysts contend that cotton production is likely to decline in the coming season as many farmers were shifting to other cash crops, mainly tobacco and sugarcane.
Given this background, one questions what is next for the households in cotton growing areas that depended on the production of the white gold for survival.
An estimated 250 000 smallholder farmers produce cotton and at least 25 percent of the country’s rural population derives livelihoods from cotton farming.
It is against this background that the Zimbabwe Farmers’ Union (ZFU) has embarked on an initiative to promote the production of cassava in semi-arid areas which predominantly produced cotton.
The project is being spearheaded by ZFU, HIVOS, Ministry of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development, Ministry of Women Affairs and Quest Financial Services.
Cassava, the second most important food crop in sub-Saharan Africa, is a root crop native to tropical America that is now consumed by millions of people and is used in food preparation in many industrialised processes.
Cassava roots can be pounded into flour and used to make bread and beer.
Its leaves can be used as a vegetable.
The ZFU commodities executive officer, Elimon Maponde said the move to boost the production of cassava in areas which traditionally produce cotton would help farmers enhance their income.
“Cassava has the potential to augment cotton farmers,” he said.
“We are targeting drier areas of the country.”
Maponde said cassava production thrives under the same weather conditions as cotton. “The cassava plant is hardy and better able to tolerate drought and poor soil conditions than most other food plants,” he said.
“It can grow in extremely poor, acidic soils.
“It is also one of the most productive food plants in terms of carbohydrate production per unit of land, and unequalled in its ability to recover when foliage is lost or damaged by diseases or pests.”
Farmers in cotton growing areas, said Maponde, will receive training on the production of cassava.
Cassava is mostly grown by small-scale farmers using traditional methods and farming on marginal lands not well suited to other crops.
The crop requires adequate moisture during the first two-to-three months, but after that, they are relatively drought resistant. Cassava roots mature to harvestable size in six to 12 months depending on variety and ecological conditions.
It can be harvested at any time in the following two years, a harvest window that provides farmers an unusual degree of flexibility. To harvest the plants, farmers typically cut off the top three-quarters of the plant, and then pull up the roots and separate them from one another.
Maponde said the project to promote cassava production had been introduced in Manicaland.
“The project was piloted in Manicaland with farmers embracing the programme and up-scaling will be in full swing in 2015,” he said.
With cotton output going down, it is expected more alternative crops will be introduced with stakeholders urged to assist farmers during the transition from their traditional crops to others.