Maravi

Dunavant launches competition for farmers

Dunavant launches competition for farmers
By Joan Chirwa
Thursday May 31, 2007 [04:00]

DUNAVANT Zambia Limited has launched a competition for farmers who have been pre-financed by the company for last season’s crop. The competition is aimed at attracting farmers back into cotton production after most of them had pulled out due to low prices offered during the previous marketing season. A kilogramme of seed cotton was sold in the range of K830 to K850 during the 2005/2006 marketing season.

However, there has been a remarkable improvement in cotton prices this season, with major buyers pegging a kilogramme of seed cotton at between K1,070 to K1,200. Dunavant Zambia managing director Nigel Seabrook said farmers from nine regions of the country have a chance to win a total of 90 prizes per region, subject to certain conditions such as; delivering a minimum of 600 kilogrammes of seed cotton per bag of planting seed accessed as a loan from the financing company.

“There will be a total of 90 prizes per region, comprising a pair of oxen, a scotch-cart, roofing sheets, bicycles, cell-phones, food security packs, cotton inputs and bags of cotton planting seed,” Seabrook said. “All farmers who registered as Dunavant growers for the 2006/2007 growing season and who purchased one bag or more of planting seed will be entered in the competition draw provided they deliver a minimum of 600 kilograms of seed cotton per bag of planting seed taken.”

The competition was earlier announced by Dunavant chairman Richard Laurin late last year when he visited Zambia. And Dunavant Zambia Limited has made a commitment towards the future of the Zambian cotton grower through its YIELD (Yield Improvement through Empowerment, Learning and Discipline) programme to achieve sustainability in cotton production.

Labels: COTTON, DUNAVANT ZAMBIA LTD, FARMERS

posted by MrK @ 11:27 PM