The harvesting period of cotton is approaching with more than 350 000 tonnes expected, representing an increase of 40 percent from last year’s yields of about 270 000 tonnes.
Zimbabwe stands to earn US$220 million in revenue when the crop find its way onto the international markets, the National Association of Cotton Ginners, Merchants and Buyers chairman Mr Happymore Mapara said.
He said over 400 000 hectares were put under crop during the current 2007/08 season. As a result of continuous rains currently being experienced countrywide, "we are certainly going to have good yields."
"We have an insignificant hectarage that was destroyed by floods in Muzarabani but this will not have any major impact on our national crop target," said Mapara. "It is also fortunate that the international prices for cotton have gone up and from our projection, the country will realise about US$220 million using the current prices."
Last year, about US$102 million was earned from cotton sales.
Mr Mapara said the force behind the projected "super yields" was joint efforts by industry players to revive the sector. Last year, the NACGMB made available US$13 million for importation of critical inputs, among them pesticides and fertilizers, in preparation for the season. In addition, the association provided money for the procurement of locally available inputs.
The Herald
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