Communal farmer defies odds, thrives with Brahman project

Raymond Jaravaza
IN an inspirational example of prime land utilisation and precision farming, a communal farmer in the Mbalabala area of Matabeleland South Province is running a thriving commercial Brahman breeding project with 160 head of pedigree cattle on semi-arid land.
While most farmers still stick to subsistence farming of growing small grains, Mr Jairos Mahlangu is defying the odds through full utilisation of his small piece of communal land at Irisvale under Village 8 to breed the highly-sought-after Brahman pedigree cattle.
Typically, villagers are allocated about five to eight hectares of land, divided into spaces for a homestead, nutritional gardens and fields for growing maize and small grains, among other crops.
Communal farmers share grazing land where it is prohibited to engage in farming activities to prevent the destruction of wetlands and other water bodies such as rivers and dams that benefit livestock species — a vital source of wealth for locals.
In an interview at his homestead, Mr Mahlangu said when he started Brahman pedigree breeding, a lot of people were sceptical saying such a high-value business requires a lot of capital, huge land and was risky because of factors such as animal diseases and theft by cattle rustlers.
“I started with just a few heifers and at that time, because I couldn’t afford a quality bull, I turned to artificial insemination, which is a very effective way to grow a herd if it’s done properly and with the constant supervision of a veterinarian,” he said.
“It doesn’t matter the size of land that a farmer owns to venture into Brahman cattle breeding. We are in a communal set-up where each household owns fewer than six hectares of land, but I have managed to fully utilise the available land to grow a herd of over 150 Brahmans,” said Mr Mahlangu.
In 2018, the Government launched the Presidential Heifer Scheme under the Command Livestock programme, where farmers in places such as Tsholotsho, Lupane and Binga, among others received heifers as part of the Second Republic’s thrust to grow the national herd.
President Mnangagwa handed over 660 heifers to farmers from Matabeleland South during the official launch of the Command Livestock programme in the province at Gwanda Showgrounds in June 2018. Some of the heifers were sourced from Mr Mahlangu’s herd.
“As part of the Government’s programme to grow the national herd, some of the heifers that were given to young upcoming farmers came from our pedigree cattle and I’m glad that we are playing our small part in supporting Government efforts to uplift the lives of farmers,” he said.
“The President has made it clear that he would like to see the national herd grow to about 11 million cattle by 2030 and as farmers, it’s important that we utilise the land that we have to achieve that target.”
Some of the beneficiaries of the livestock scheme such as Mr Lindwell Moyo of Tsholotsho who spoke to Chronicle last year received three heifers and has grown his herd to 12.
Statistics released last year showed that the national herd stood at 5,5 million and various measures have been put in place to improve the livestock sector, including artificial insemination, which involves cross-breeding with semen from selected quality bulls, vaccination programmes and dip tank rehabilitation to prevent tick-borne diseases.

Mr Jairos Mahlangu
Since Mr Mahlangu’s project is in a communal area where land does not come in abundance, the farmer has turned to supplementary feeding using grass that his team of employees harvest from surrounding areas.
“We usually cut grass in the surrounding areas but this year because of drought, our local area is short of grass as there are also many cattle grazing in the same area, so we have had to reach out to places like Bulawayo and surrounding places.
“As a farmer, when you drive around Bulawayo and see some good grass that you think will help supplement your stock feed, you simply go to an office at Tower Block where you will be permitted to cut the grass – free of charge.
“It’s important as farmers to make sure that we always have stockpiles of grass for supplementary feeding so that our cattle have enough feed throughout the year. Right now, we have over 40 weaners, which are young cattle that now completely depend on pastures, so we feed them the grass then complement their diet with stock feed that rich in nutrients,” said Mr Mahlangu.
During the visit, the news crew also observed the farm employees offloading grass that they had cut on the outskirts of Bulawayo. As a veteran farmer who has been exhibiting at the Bulawayo Agricultural Society, which runs concurrently with the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF), Mr Mahlangu said the exhibitions allow farmers to market their produce to local, regional and international buyers.
“We meet a lot of potential buyers at exhibitions such as the Bulawayo Agricultural Society. During this year’s Trade Fair, we had the honour of meeting a top official from AFC Bank who was impressed with our pedigree cattle and just last week another customer who saw our cattle at the Trade Fair picked up heifers that he bought from us,” he said.
“So, we are extremely happy that our breed will help another farmer grow his herd in another part of the country.”
Mr Mahlangu emphasised the importance of farmers keeping in constant touch with local veterinarians in their area for effective disease control, early diagnosis of diseases and the general health of their animals throughout the year.
He advised the youth interested in venturing into Brahman cattle breeding to start small and work their way up.
“The youth must learn to use that piece of land that belongs to their parents or grandparents and venture into farming.
“All it takes is by starting small whether through a chicken rearing project, which does not cost a lot of money but needs the young farmer to grow small grains as stock feed for his or her chickens.
“Two or three heifers can turn around the life of a young farmer in just three years,” said Mr Mahlangu.
“I’m available in person or over the phone for any young farmer out there who is willing to learn about Bahman breeding.
“I have always told my employees and relatives to allow anyone who wants to see for themselves how we do Brahman breeding access into the homestead so that they have an appreciation that it’s possible to breed pedigree cattle in a village.”
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