ARAC Update #2/2011
28 January 2011
Dear Farmer,
Have you ever heard the expression PBZ. I heard it for the first time yesterday and was impressed. Put simply it means “Plan B to Z” i.e. what you do when the first option, namely plan “A” fails. I have often heard of Plans “B” and “C “or even “D” but realise that our options are invariably only stifled by our ingenuity. Farmers have long utilized this facility and we in our changed circumstances continue to explore options to find a way forward. We receive correspondence from people with a wide variety of ideas… perhaps you have one that can stimulate dialogue… please share it.
Yesterday a group from the CFU visited Foundations for Farming and met with Brian Oldrieve and his team. We will soon be embarking on a mentoring process for farmers interested in extension work in conjunction with their team. In due course it will also result in the development of demonstration plots at in the grounds of Agriculture House. I was struck by the quality of crops that we saw there and realise that the upheavals we have faced over the last ten or so years in the farming sector have also occurred at a time when many would have been involved in a substantial shift in the way that we farmed and the paradigm of chemicals and the like. I suspect as the country explores recovery this will involve many fresh technologies pioneered by Brian and his team. If you are interested in the planned program please contact us at ARAC and we will keep you posted.
I will be out of office for the next couple of weeks and hope to engage with a number of stake holders in the UK. In my absence I have asked Wynand Hart to send out a few notes on the documentation work that he is coordinating at present. We believe that it will be helpful in due course, initially to assist others who have already completed Loss Claim Documents to standardise these, but in addition much useful information can also be gained in verifying disturbance losses which will assist the overall compensation issue. I guess the fundamentals that Foundations for Farming use, namely:
1. On time ,
2. To a high standard,
3. With minimum wastage,
4. Do it with Joy!
apply equally to all that we endeavour and certainly this paradigm is being applied to the work on compensation and consequential losses that we are doing.
Some of you may be aware that John Laurie who has been so instrumental in furthering the Valcon process has been in CapeTown for emergency medical treatment. We have been advised that he will be out of hospital in a day or so. We wish him a speedy recovery and thank him for the considerable effort he has put in on all our behalves.
Take care,
Best regards,
Ben Gilpin
ARAC – Agricultural Recovery & Compensation
COMMERCIAL FARMERS’ UNION OF ZIMBABWE
Tel: +263 4 309800-19 ext 249
Email: [email protected]
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