A ZVISHAVANE small-scale dairy farmer Chipo Mpofu has scooped the best Zimbabwean Farmer of the Year Award during a ceremony organised by the Zimbabwe Agricultural Society (Zas).
Mpofu, whose farm is located in Siboza rural area, some few kilometres from the mining town, said she was humbled to be a recipient of such a “huge prize” considering where she operates from.
Mpofu, who owns quite a number of dairy cattle, said her resilience and dedication to keeping the livestock has seen her scooping the award.
“I am so grateful and humbled to be a recipient of such a huge prize as someone who just operates here in Siboza where there is not much activity. I believe this is because of our commitment here at the farm because we give it to raising the cattle,” she said.
Mpofu encouraged other farmers to buy supplement feed as a way to boost their production.
“It is better to sell one cow and buy feed for the rest than to have hundreds of cows that are unhealthy. Due to the drought season we sometimes endure it is advisable to supplement cattle feeds,” she said.
Zas chief executive officer Andrew Matibiri commended Mpofu whom she described as a determined farmer who if supported can contribute much income to the economy.
“What we saw here is great work which is done on a mere 2.5 hectares which includes the homestead. This is great and can go a long way benefiting our economy,” he said.
Matibiri said Mpofu’s cattle produce at least 20 litres of milk in a day.
“That is impressive considering that it is done under fairly difficult conditions. There are no irrigation facilities here yet the farmer is taking it upon herself to make sure the cattle are being looked after properly,” he said.
Matibiri said Mpofu excelled through the provincial right to the national level where she scooped an award.
In honour of her work, Zas held the prize giving ceremony at Mpofu’s Siboza homestead.
