SEED Co Limited is now at an advanced stage in its partnership with Saro Agro Science in Nigeria that will see the company increasing maize growth in the West African nation.
BY TATIRA ZWINOIRA
Speaking at their annual general meeting in Harare yesterday, group chief executive officer Morgan Nzwere said the deal would see 70% going to Seed Co while 30% would go to Saro Agro Science in Nigeria.
“We will be growing our maize in the war-torn area where people were affected by the war and are looking forward to our first meaningful production, quantities will be small though,” Nzwere said.
Saro Agro Sciences Limited is a leading supplier of agro-chemicals crop protection and crop improvement products in Nigeria.
The deal between Seed Co Limited and Saro Agro Science was signed three years ago and is in its advanced stages due to the new political dispensation in Nigeria.
For every $1, Seed Co will invest 70% while Saro Agro Sciences will put 30%. The same model determines the sharing of profits. Seed Co is expanding its regional business with a team in place in the Democratic Republic of Congo that is making progress in terms of market development.
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The company has sought the intervention of Comesa to obtain a licence in Ethiopia, Nzwere said.
In its update at the annual general meeting, Seed Co said winter cereal sales saw an overall 11% uptake due mainly to a rebound in Zambia as there was a more flexible credit plan by the Zambian Commercial Farmers’ Union under their Lima programme. The Lima programme is a credit scheme for farmers.
“Also, last year’s stocks were affected by the fact that farmers were sitting on huge carryover stock which they then planted, so this year they had to come and buy new stocks which is what led to wheat sales improving significantly in Zambia,” Nzwere said.
“Here in Zimbabwe, they (wheat sales) are still very subdued because of issues to deal with funding, electricity, import parity and so on. Zambian Commercial Farmers’ Union had a more flexible credit plan under their Lima programme.”
Zimbabwe wheat sales suffered due to the lack of concessionary finance, electricity challenges and import parity issues. As a way to combat the slowdown, Seed Co Limited is expecting to have adequate stocks to meet demand, grow outs at all strategic business units and to focus more on quality to improve business.
“The state of the economy is just difficult and I think some of these things will take a bit of time to sort out. The remaining half of the year is where we do 90% to 95% of our sales, major products being maize and soya bean seed,” Nzwere said.
Seed Co Limited has also managed to get $16, 2 million since year-end from its debtors (customers) across the region.
