Elita Chikwati Senior Agriculture Reporter
Government has urged soyabean farmers to be patient and not rush to sell their crop at giveaway prices as the State is finalising a more viable price.

The advice comes as some soyabean farmers who have harvested are now selling their crop to middlemen at low prices.

Middlemen normally buy grains from farmers at very low prices and later sell to the Grain Marketing Board at a higher price.

Lands, Agriculture and Rural Resettlement Deputy Minister Davis Marapira yesterday said the new price will be announced in the next three weeks.

“Government would like to inform the farming community that it is currently finalising a soyabean producer price for farmers, which will be much higher than the current GMB buying price. GMB is currently buying soyabean at $610 per tonne.

“Farmers are therefore requested to be patient and wait for this exercise to be finalised. Government wants the price benefit to go directly to the farmers. It is possible that people buying the soyabean will later on sell to GMB for a higher and better price. Farmers are encouraged to act wisely,” he said.

Deputy Minister Marapira said Government was expecting around 200 000 tonnes of soyabean during the 2017-18 marketing season.

“We expect the country to be self-sufficient in the next two years,” he said.

Government will from this season include oilseed crops under Command Agriculture and as part of strategies to boost production and ensure the processing industry has adequate raw materials to boost production capacity.

Acting President General Constantino Chiwenga (Retired), recently said beginning with the 2018-19 season, crops such as soyabean, sunflower and cotton would be included under Command Agriculture.

“This time around, soyabean was produced by A2 farmers but we would want our 1,8 million small- scale farmers to come to this programme and produce soyabean.

“We are now generally agreed that our rural farmers and our A1 farmers will also be encouraged to grow the crops in suitable areas. Even if they produce an acre or half acre we have no problem with that as long as the crop is produced well. So, if we collect all that, we will have excess of what we want,” the Acting President said.

He also encouraged processing companies to assist farmers by funding production of the crops so that they have access to raw materials.