Written By: Lloyd M’bwana
The country’s legume farmers have commended the private owned seed breeder, Peacock Enterprise Limited for providing hybrid variety seeds including beans, cow and pigeon peas, and groundnuts which are proved to be drought tolerant and producing high yields.
The development is awake up call for and relief for most farmers who have not yet embraced the hybrid seeds amid effects of climate change whose impact includes dry spells, drought, flood, landslides among others which have contributed to the nation’s food crisis for almost two years.
In an agriculture field day, Peacock conducted on Wednesday, April 20 at Mkwanje village, in the Traditional Authority (T.A) Mwanza in the lakeshore district of Salima most legume farmers spoke to The Maravi Post on random interviews expressed gratitude on how the hybrid seeds have changed their lives for better due to bumper harvest.
The field day which is an annual event aimed at showcasing Peacock’s hybrid seed varieties including maize, rice and legume on how are responding to farmers needs as cash crops amid effects of climate change which lowers farm produces.
Through Chileka Association, legume farmers in the area, Peacock is providing farm inputs through contract farming system of breeding the seeds varieties (where growers pay back loans on inputs upon produces sales as the same company buy the crops at an agreeable) and attractive market prices for the crops.
Letala Chibenthula, a cow pea’s farmer lauded peacock hybrid seed variety as produces’ proceeds have an able his family to send children to school, buying solar lamps and furniture among others.
“Since we started growing Peacock’s cow peas two years ago by just using 10 kilograms of the seeds in an acre, we have been able to fetch MK200,000.00 yearly (after all the loans have been paid back). But using the same piece of land with other seeds we were able to have K50, 000.00 which wasn’t enough for family needs.
“The good thing about Peacock’s cow peas is that harvest is done twice per growing season. It does not require much water as a crop cover and give more yield than the latter. Therefore, it an appeal to other legume farmers to embrace this type of hybrid variety if they want family economic growth”, urges Chibenthula who plans to build a big house after this year’s harvest as crops variety is promising.
Echoing on the same Luke Chikanyeka, Chileka Association Coordinator appeal for more seeds supplement especially for winter cropping which he said most farmers were willing to venture into legume productions as the areas is swampy where water was available for such farming.
“The only challenge we had in this year’s growing season is that the seeds came a bit late which as well affected the cultivation but all in all crops in the fields are promising as Peacock seeds has never betrayed us. Let alone farmers integrate their legumes with maize and tobacco for covering up food crisis that is hitting the nation by using certified seed such as Peacock seed hybrid variety”, appeals Chikanyeka whose grouping has 1,500 farmers.
The Maravi Post later caught up with Horace Boti, Peacock Enterprise Limited’s Corporate Affairs and Markets Development Officer on the prospects of his company’s products on the market and as to why farmers much embrace them, who assured the general public’s economic benefits with a little piece of land when farmers use Peacock products.
Boti explained that the company was executing its products into two bases including putting farmers on contract for seed breeding and sourcing markets for their produces with expectation that farmers are economically empowered.
“Peacock seeds are hybrid variety to reckon with as they provide maximum output on a little piece of land, pests and disease resistant, and drought tolerant which is a milestone of achieving food security. This year’s growing season wasn’t good as most farmers sought our seeds a bit late which also affecting the planting exercise.
“Although late provision of seeds might affect the harvest but farmers might get enough yields for sale whose proceeds will be able to support their families because our products surpass imaginable climate condition hence farmers must embrace our products”, assures Boti.
Peacock Enterprise Limited is a Malawian owned company evolved over 14 years from poultry farming into commodity trading, transport, dairy breeding and production of certified seeds working collaboratively with key stakeholders in seed production including ICRISAT,STAM and Ministry of Agriculture.
Peacock whose vision is to create an enabling environment for wealth creation in Malawi also ensures quality seed processing, packaging and distribution from largely produced farms through contract farming with growers in Mchinji, Salima, Kasungu and Dedza districts.
The company is into pure daily breeding for cows, sheep and goats plus certified hybrid maize and legume varieties whose emphasis is on quality, efficiency, passion for excellence, transparency and integrity among others.
