Siavonga Member of Parliament, Kennedy Hamudulu, has appealed to government, through the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, to immediately intervene in the impasse of cotton prices between farmers and cotton ginneries in the district.
Mr Hamudulu observed that the K1,600 per kilo gram offered by ginneries was a mockery and uneconomical to farmers as it was much lower than the K3,500 offered last marketing season.
He observed that it was unfair for the ginneries to buy cotton from the farmers at K1, 600 per kilo gram instead of buying it at K5,000 per kilo gram, the price which they had agreed upon earlier with the cotton farmers.
Mr Hamudulu made the appeal after cotton farmers complained to him during a meeting that they felt cheated by ginneries who have reduced the buying price of cotton from the agreed K5,000 to K1,600 per kilo gram.
One of the cotton farmers, Jennifer Siambulo, complained that the price offer for cotton was so low that it could not earn farmers any profit considering the high production cost of the crop.
Mrs Siambulo suggested that farmers unions and government should decide and impose a reasonable price for cotton as the case is with maize, whose price is determined by the government.
Another farmer, Moffat Sai, suggested that if the ginneries buy their cotton at k1, 600 per kilo gram they should as well reduce the seed prices.
Mr Sai accused the ginneries of allegedly lying to them by promising to buy their produce at above K5,000 per kilo gram but decide to reduce the price to K1,600 after production.
ZANIS
The government has been issueing statements that they will come in but so far nothing. the first was winter Kabimba,followed by Chenda and Now scot was also quoted in one of the medias that government would come in.So when is the government going to come in? probably chenda has not informed the president.
Its called demand and supply. Balance the two and your cotton prices will normalize no need to involve government
As a matter od urgency the Govt should look into it. How can a farmer earn a living by selling cotton at 20 cents a kilo. This is the cash crop diversification Zambian should emabrk on and it has to have returns. The price of cotton on the world market is just too high.
#1 – have you heard about people being swindled?
Look at current global trends and you will see that the lint price is low on the world market. The key is china which has too much lint stocks and being the only major buyer, the cotton prices may not be good until after the current stocks are consumed. The northen hemisphere has as much plantings aas the sourthern hemisphere which makes it more trick. unless you want government to come up with subsidies then the future looks blick.
@1. Typical Ukwanite what would you know about agriculture? This is beyond your station.
CHIMBWI NO PLAN !
FYOONSE FINTU NAFIPENA !
ANOTHER 4 YEARS, AHA, TILIKO ! WINA AZALIILA !
A number of points:
commodity prices are falling down. cotton prices on the global market went down last year and the trend has continued. Ginneries should know that before they go out to contract small farmers and promise 5k zmk/kg. However, I think that the price has not tipped so low as to reduce the price by 70%. Ginneries should also pay for their mismanagement and inefficiencies in running their supply chains and processes.Â
Our current PF that has no economic road map will definitely do a lot of dancing to such things as these. copper prices are falling, all exports are expected to slow with the euro crisis.
volatility is here to stay and a bit of planning to ensure stability in the economic fundamentals is key. this is the only way investor confidence can be maintained.
Don’t kubambila. Its not ginners to blame but PF who have increased tax on cotton export to revamp kafue textiles. Upuba a CNP muziba tyala.