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THE Zimbabwe Farmers Union (ZFU), in partnership with some abattoirs and stakeholders, has established a feedlot in the Mangwe District for fattening livestock before they are taken to the market, an official has said. The feedlot project is aimed at assisting farmers make profit from livestock through improving quality of the ultimate product.
It is targeting cattle ranching areas such as Matabeleland North and South and Masvingo provinces.
A feedlot, also known as a feed yard, is a land area under a perimeter fence where livestock is restricted for two to three months and fed a highly specialised diet to fatten them before marketing and slaughter.

Prior to entering a feedlot, cattle are weighed, dosed, dipped and vaccinated to eliminate diseases and pests.
This is followed by an induction process where animals are introduced to the new environment and stock feeds with minimum movement.
ZFU livestock expert Mr Lloyd Mataya said plans were afoot to spread the feedlots across the country.

“The issue is on primarily improving the quality of cattle before they are sold. Currently, we are engaging various partners for the purpose of scaling up the programme. We want to cover the whole southern part of the country soon,” he said.

Mr Mataya said the union was also exploring ways of establishing similar feed lots for goats.
“It is not a secret that small livestock production is mostly considered a women’s business. Therefore a deliberate move to boost small livestock production and marketing would ultimately lead to women empowerment,” he said.

Mr Mataya said the union was targeting to set up the feedlots across the country to improve the profit margins and eventually the livelihoods of livestock farmers in country. – New Ziana