Contract farming in Zambia - My experience

I had the opportunity to lead a project for the supply of cotton to a world-renowned ginnery, with the intention of exporting the product. The first step was to understand the quantity and quality required for the cotton supply. After this, we identified a farming community that could participate in the project. However, we faced several challenges, as the main product produced in the southern region of Zambia is maize, and family farming for maize is focused on supplying food for the families.

We learned that there was a history of cotton farming promoted by the government in previous years, and there were other competitors in the market. However, we aimed to do something better for the communities. We managed to gather around 300 farmers who were willing to participate in the project.

We faced some challenges related to identifying the plots and defining their ownership, as these are very rural locations with a lot of cultural customs where the ownership of the land is defined in a rudimentary way, mostly with a paper issued by the local tribal leader. We had to work closely with these leaders to gain their support for the project to move in the right direction.

The contracts were issued according to the country’s laws, and we made sure to get positive feedback from the local leaders to ensure acceptance of the terms. The next phase was logistics and training on new agricultural technologies to ensure the quality needed. We aimed for a production of 100,000 tonnes in the second and third years, with the first year being uncertain. To achieve this, we established depots in the areas of production. These depots were not only used for the distribution of inputs, but also for training sessions and meetings where farmers could raise their doubts.

As we started the training sessions, we realized that there was a missing link – the food side of the production. Most of the farmers were only willing to make a fraction of their land available for the project, as they wanted to ensure food for their families. This meant that they would plant maize on one side and cotton on the other, leading to a reduction in the amount of inputs going directly to cotton. To overcome this problem, we decided to support the maize production as well and even buy the farmers' excess maize production.

The farmer community is very conservative, and they like to be loyal to their techniques and way of doing things. Getting them to change their ways can be a challenge, especially if we need quantity and quality. We needed to conduct soil analysis, correct soil imbalances, apply basal fertilization, herbicides and pesticides for good crop yield. However, they were very reluctant to accept this. To overcome this challenge, we used the younger farmers who had access to the internet and smartphones. They were trained on the best practices, and they helped convince the older farmers to implement them.

We were extremely vigilant during the first year, and apart from some bad results in some plots and some attempts at deviation from the contracted terms, we managed to produce a significant portion of the expected yield. Overall, it was a great experience, and we were able to positively impact the lives of the farming community in Zambia.