Farmers set Cargill's cotton ablaze
By Mukosha Funga
Mon 02 July 2012, 13:23 CAT
ABOUT 200 farmers have set ablaze cotton valued at K17.6 million belonging to Cargill in Petauke. And in Kabwe, Willy Zimba was stubbed to death by his ex-girlfriend after a quarrel.
Police assistant spokesperson Ester Katongo said the cotton belonged to Cargill Cotton Zambia. She said company officials managed to buy 135 bales of cotton weighing 11,300 Kilograms and valued at K 17,604,800 from farmers in Sopa Village.
Katongo said on its way back on Saturday, the truck that was laden with cotton was intercepted by angry farmers and when Cargill area manager, Richard Tembo heard what had happened, he went to the area where he found about 200 angry farmers gathered.
"When the farmers discovered that Mr. Tembo was not there to negotiate the cotton prices, they set ablaze the cotton and Mr. Tembo sought refuge in the police post as the irate farmers begun stoning the police post leaving four window panes and for asbestos broken," said Katongo.
Katongo said one person had been arrested in connection with the arson and investigations had been intensified so as to bring all those that participated in the arson to book.
"The modern way of resolving issues is through dialogue and not violence which does not pay," said Katongo.
And Katongo said Zimba of Kawama Compound was stabbed in the stomach by his ex-girlfriend Bupe Mupeta around 18:00 hours on Saturday.
"It is alleged that the deceased confronted the suspect who is alleged to have been his ex-girlfriend querying her over her purported sexual relationships with other men. This was during a drinking spree at a house where both were drinking local brewed beer," she said.
"A fight erupted between the two and the suspect grabbed a knife from someone who was cutting vegetables and stabbed the victim in the stomach."
Mupeta has since been arrested and charged with murder.
Labels: CARGILL, COTTON, PETAUKE
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Cargill Cotton pledges to follow guiding principles
By Christopher Miti in Chipata
Tue 18 May 2010, 07:30 CAT
CARGILL Cotton country manager Frans Grey says the company will strictly follow its guiding principles because it does not want to steal from the Zambian government. Speaking when labour deputy minister Simon Kachimba inspected Cargill, Grey said whatever his company was doing in Zambia was properly documented.
“We have very strong guiding principles and whatever we do, in the books we state exactly what we are doing. We don’t want to steal from the Zambian government,” he said.
Grey said last year, Cargill financed 42,000 farmers in the province and that this year the company had financed 48,000 farmers.
He said the company gave farmers inputs on loan among other things.
Grey said his company provided personal protection to workers in the factory.
Grey said Cargill had constructed some classes as a way of ploughing back to the community.
Cargill Cotton human resource manager Erasmus Mtoloki said the company provided wages that were higher than the minimum wage.
Kachimba urged Cargill to ensure that it puts people on contract so that at the end of the day they get gratuity.
Labels: CARGILL, COTTON, FRANS GREY
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COMMENT - I don't welcome this development. Zambia has a tough enough time taking on international mining companies. Now Cargill is claiming a piece of Zambia. What is needed is international legislation to limit the rights and abilities of these giant corporations.
Cargill opens Zambia branch
By Mutale Kapekele
Thu 18 Mar. 2010, 03:50 CAT
CARGILL, one of the biggest multinational American grain and oilseed companies in Middle East and Africa, has opened a branch in Zambia.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the Zambian branch at Acacia Park in Lusaka on Tuesday, US Embassy deputy chief of party Michael Koplovsky said the coming of Cargill on the local market would help farmers get links to the international market that they previously didn’t access.
Koplovsky said the US was proud that one of its largest privately-owned companies had decided to invest in Zambia.
He said the liberalisation of trade had improved Zambian exports and that international organisations were attracted to the country by “predictable and stable economy in a peaceful environment.”
He said Cargill was known for its good corporate citizenship in America and urged them to extend their corporate social responsibilities to Zambia.
“Cargill has been involved in supporting communities in sectors such as water and health and we hope that you will continue doing that here,” he said.
And Cargill chief operating officer Pieter Reichert said the company was attracted to the country because of the blossoming grain and oilseed market.
“The grain and oilseed market in Zambia has seen exponential growth over the last few years and as a result, our trading team has grown substantially,” Reichert said.
“We intend to continue this investment in the region and significantly increase the volume of grain and oilseeds that we trade in the next 18 to 24 months.
“He said the company would focus on wheat, corn and soybeans and would collaborate with cotton farmers in Zambia.
Reichert said Cargill would provide financial and technical support to cotton farmers and give them crop inputs.
“Cargill has been working in Zambia after the acquisition of Clarke Cotton in 2006 and we shall continue supporting the farmers by providing risk management tools that will enable them to manage their own price risk when selling their crops and opens up their individual access to the market,” he said.
“As we grow in the grain and oilseed market, we are now starting to introduce cotton best practices to help our Zambian grain and oilseed supply chain reach its full potential.”
Labels: CARGILL, CORPORATIONS, FDI, SEED
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