Land Use Plan For MUSONZA Plot
Land Use Plan For MUSONZA Plot
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1.0 Overview of the Farm
Musonza Plot is in Chihota rural district, Mashonaland East. The plot is in the rural land
as stated in the constitution of the republic of Zimbabwe. This shows that the land can
produce farm produce without any limit because lies in the laws of Zimbabwe Rural Land
Act [Chapter 20:18]. The plot is located in natural II where rainfall has been on the fall
in the past few years because of climate change. The plot is in Chihota, Mashonaland
East province, subtropical highland climate or temperate oceanic climate with dry winters.
Chihota, Beatrice, Chitungwiza and Harare are the close markets to all produce from the
proposed place. The aforementioned plot has approximately 1 ha with an average of 0.8
ha being arable.
Following the assessments done on the farm which was done on 6 January 2023 at
Musonza plot (subdivision of the rural land), this report has been produced to cater to
farm development and investments. The various solutions, standards, and
recommendations have been produced specifically for Musonza plot for the conscious
development of the Farm. In this report, there is a land capability assessment, enterprises
under present land use, factors affecting land use, proposed land use, farm machinery
use and adequacy, financial implications of the proposed land use, and general guidelines
for implementation of projects. The idea is to come up with the best enterprise
combination that gives better returns with efficient utilization of land. The Farm potential
will therefore be utilized by following the recommendations given in this report.
1.2 Introduction
The area in which the plot is situated is commonly known as an intensive projects area
with horticulture, roadrunners, pigs, and subsistence farming in most cases. The major
reason particularly land size, season quality, good rains as well as high heat units, which
promote sustainability in the establishment of crops. However, this has never hindered
the production of other commercial crops or livestock species, which give a higher return.
The plot has already established crop fields planted with maize and other minor crops,
which is very important as well towards the development of an integrated Farm that pays.
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Looking at these existing crops there is more that can be attained through utilizing the
existing potential especially preparing for the next biggest livestock unit. The whole idea
is centered on tapping into high-value enterprises and introducing new systems of
production that bring the much-needed cash flow. The neighboring farmers are more into
commercial business with a farmer across the road before the plot doing better with
greenhouses and roadrunners. Most importantly, there is a need for the establishment of
a boundary fence to do away with boundary conflicts, and the diamond wire fence is
recommended.
It is of great importance to use the land in the best interest that saves the purpose of
rural development. The Chihota area is growing outwards meaning there is a lot of
pressure on land utilization particularly for residential purposes. There is high chance of
having the rural area legalized for Harare residents hence there is need for
commercialization of all activities done on the Farm to secure the place. We have
proposed the intensive farming to make it difficult to take the place in future as it can be
recognized as food hub with high value agricultural projects. The idea is to run the place
as a food hub, which is recognized by Zimbabwean laws. Most importantly, there is need
to register the company for food production with area of production recognized as a
production site or business address which then satisfy the area as important site to the
nation. Development is high prioritized as title deeds can be obtained as an industrial site
for the business meaning, even if the council need to take the land, they will compensate.
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2.0 Factors affecting Farmland use.
The Farmland utilization is based on land potential as analyzed in this chapter where
various parameters are assessed. The idea is to utilize land according to its capacity
without being limited by factors that can be controlled. They are natural and artificial
factors, with those that cannot be altered will be given strategies so that the farm realizes
higher profit margins. The assessments were also guided by the fact that there is a need
for some level of sustainability where generational wealth is produced and the same land
has to be maintained so that it remains viable to produce.
2.1 Soil
There is only one major soil type on the Farm. It is gleysh sandy loam soil mainly derived
from diorites and greenstones showing that there is a high chance of having acidic soil,
which therefore needs confirmation from soil chemical analysis. These soils have a similar
depth with sand in all areas marked crop fields, having a depth of more than 1.5 m, which
makes it suitable for both shallow and deep-rooted crops. The soil is generally weak in
the nutritional capacity as it loses nutrients quickly through leaching. In most cases after
every rain, there is quick leaching with most nutrients lost before crop adsorption. On the
eastern boundary where there is more of sand soil and there is need for proper soil
management. For erosion, we have proposed the establishment of contour ridges and
proper crop care. In fertilizer application, the soil needs a lot of attention, particularly the
use of manure that improves soil health, application of straight fertilizers in splits to cater
for leaching.
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2.2 Topography
The area is predominantly flat with a fall of approximately 3 % in the eastern direction
from the central position of the crop field marked greenhouses. They are two contour
ridges running on either side of the farm and they receive runoff water from crop fields.
The area, which is marked by crop fields, has a very good slope percentage of less than
3 % as shown in the map below. Contour ridges have been suggested in crop fields to
reduce soil erosion.
The areas, which are in red, denote a high slope and it shows that there are many
depressions on the eastern boundary line which are caused by runoff water. On
depressions, there is a need to fill up those depressions for better project investment.
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2.2.1 Aspect
The aspect shows areas, which receive more sunlight because of day length, and in this
case, north-facing slopes in red and purple color are the perfect areas for horticulture
and poultry shown in the land use map. Solar system c=should be installed in north-
facing slopes which are red and purple.
The elevation map shows height above sea level, in this case, the red color shows lower
ground with the potential of collecting water, and the green color shows higher ground
which is then suitable for the installation of water reservoirs for irrigation. However, the
difference between higher and lower ground is neglected in the farm structures as they
can be constructed on lower ground.
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2.3 Climate
The area receives appreciable amounts of rainfall at least for summer cropping. However,
due to climate change, there is a reduced amount to at least 800 mm in good season.
This indicates that for sustainable crop production there is a need for supplementary
irrigation for any crop because quantity might be good with poor rainfall distribution.
The possibility of less water requirement as the plot will be mainly focusing on livestock
and intensive horticulture and they require less water as compared to horticulture.
Borehole capacity and borehole recharge is key to determine number of boreholes
required.
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2.5-Labour
The Farm is located in the middle of a rural farming zone with neighboring setups
operating as food hubs, and subsistence farming with more farmers operating as
businesses. It then shows that there is a risk of labor shortages during labor peaks, for
example during harvesting, and planting. In most cases, labor will be hired in specific
areas to help the available permanent workforce. In rural areas, labor is usually expensive
as young people and women are looking for income for families as they only focus on
their fields farming activities for a better living. The best decision will be to hire different
people from various locations. Most important is labor planning and management, starting
from having contracts signed with both parties according to law to avoid unnecessary
conflicts as well as providing wages and salaries with NASSA deductions. Labour planning
should be thoroughly done to make sure people employed are sufficient for the work with
management coming out to make sure people employed are achieving their targets in set
times.
2.6-Equipments
With the proposed projects of greenhouse farming (0.3 ha), poultry more than 10,000
birds feed formulatations, there is a need for functional truck to ferry commodities to and
from the market. Most of the machines required here are related to feed and meat
processing for higher value.
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2.7 Market Potential
There is never been the best time to focus on the food value chain system other than
now, looking at how the population has grown, demand for food and healthy food kinds
of stuff is booming. Looking at the bigger picture, the food supply has never been big
volumes compensate enough it is all about producing volumes even when prices go down,
lower price. Let’s have a closer look at cabbage, when it floods the market, the price went
down to US$1.00 for 5 cabbages, when one has a hectare with 20,000 heads (US$4,000)
is obtainable whilst a farmer with 40,000 heads from a single hectare under very good
management will walk away with US$8,000.00. For a crop like cabbage, it is good money.
The same applies to all other enterprises and crops. With animal products the same,
imagine having 20,000 broilers, minimum of US$15,000.00 is obtainable as net income
after 5 weeks compared to having 1,000 broilers. More money is obtainable by creating
cycles so that every time there is an activity happening at the farm, every day there
should be a sale other than waiting for 4 months to get sales. The market is always there
it’s all about checking where to get the market, producing in the off-season, producing
volumes, good management, and penetrating special markets.
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3.0 Existing developments and practices
3.1 Arable lands
Nearly 0.5 ha of arable land on the Farm has been stumped and planted with maize and
other crops leaving 0.5 ha on either which shall be cleared for the proposed enterprises.
The soils of all lands are in reasonably good heart and gave a good crumb structure.
The plan for this farm is going to be executed in such a way that serves the interests of
the farmer that is to maximize returns by focusing mainly on high-earning enterprises to
maximize premium land available. This is done by integrating farm enterprises that in
turn decrease fixed cost per unit thus increasing output- economies of scale. For the
proposed enterprises, it doesn’t mean the investment has to build all of them at once.
The project can start with one greenhouse or 10,000 birds and use the income from it to
build until reaching the maximum capacity. The normal implementation phase will be
starting on basic things that enhance to start a business as a business.
Borehole drilling
Project development
Infrastructure development
Based on the above factors these are the projects proposed for Jumira Farm, with the
idea of making sure that, every potential is utilized. These proposed projects are
selected based on land capacity and maximum returns obtainable from the area. Let
us take, for instance, sugar beans it does not give much value to the land as compared
to horticulture because of the time and income obtainable. Proposed projects –
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4.1 GREENHOUSES
The advantage of doing greenhouse farming is that you can grow your crops all year
round. Greenhouse farming makes it possible to realize a bumper harvest. 500 m2
greenhouses have been proposed with the idea of using 0.3 ha which accommodates 3
greenhouses which are measuring 10 m by 50 m each. This business will be mainly
focused on tomatoes, English cucumber, and colored pepper. The area proposed suits 3
greenhouses with no room for expansion.
500
sqm 10 m x 50 m 1 660 $5,900.00
500 2 988
sqm 10 m x 50 m $5,900.00
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4.1.2 Greenhouse tomato
The cost of production (working capital) is US$2,556 for the 1,660 tomato plants over 6
to 9 months of production. This translates to a cost per plant of $1.54. Potentially with
indeterminate tomato varieties, the project will harvest 10 to 20kg per plant.
Conservatively, we calculate with 12kg which translates to 19,920kg over its harvesting
duration. Potential income is US$9,960.00 fewer costs, the gross margin becomes
$7,404.00 the return per dollar invested is $3.9. This value is far greater than most
agricultural projects. With the above figures, the payback of the greenhouse lies at less
than 1 year. This further makes this project lucrative since after incurring Capex costs,
one can still recover the amount in less than 1 year, then the consecutive years of
production will be for profit maximization.
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Cropping calendar
Greenhouse Cucumber
When talking about greenhouse farming in Zimbabwe, we can never skip English
cucumber farming. Zimbabweans are a braai-loving people of which cucumbers are a
central part of the salads used during braais. On average, 5 in every 10 Zimbabweans
consume cucumber regularly. Therefore demand, especially in the festive season, is very
high to give a reasonable market price.
The cost of production is $2656 for the 1660 cucumber plants over 4.5 to 7 months of
production. This translates to a cost per plant of $1.6. Potentially with high-yield English
varieties, expectations should be around 15kgs per plant just like a tomato. This will
translate to 24,900 kilograms over its harvesting duration. Potential income is $21,663
fewer production costs, and the gross margin becomes $19,007.
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A GROSS MARGIN BUDGET FOR
CUCUMBER
Planting
Growing period
Harvesting
Resting period
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4.1.4 Greenhouse Pepper Production
This is the pacesetter initiation as it gives revenue within the first 3-4 months of
production as they are short-term payback period projects and they can be harvested
over a long period. What is only important is to install an irrigation facility for example
drip irrigation under good management. The horticultural farming business is a rewarding
venture if genetics and good agronomic practices are well appreciated. The 10 by 50m
or 500m2 Greenhouses are used as a reference because it is one of the best as it gives
better revenue
Colour pepper (red and yellow) are suitable for greenhouse over green pepper because
of the high return they give. Colored pepper are suitable for greenhouse because of the
quality they require and they are intolerance to outside conditions. Bell pepper production
under greenhouse is a good business model. When we reach the target to get at least
5kg per plant which is the minimum under good management. Pepper plant population
is double that of tomatoes, for instance, a greenhouse of 500 m2 accommodate 1,660
tomatoes or 3,320 plants. With the assumption of 5 kg per plant, using 90% success rate,
it means 2,988 will produce giving 14,940 kg. From all greenhouse crops proposed,
pepper has the high return over all other crops.
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Jan Fe Mar Apr Ma Jun Jul Au Se Oc Nov De
b p t c
Crop Days
Pepper 60-90
KEY
Planting
Growing period
Harvesting
Resting period
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Proposed projects: Poultry (broiler)
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Disinfectants 9700 $0.03 $252.20
Total $28,566.50
Revenue Calculations
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Number of Birds per Cycle 5,000
Total $14,725.00
Revenue Calculations
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4.5 Stock Feed processing
Livestock farming, large and small, is very much a big business in Harare and districts
around, with many farmers specializing in beef and chicken farming. The area is one of
the best regions for beef production taking advantage of the sour veld preferred by beef
animals. However, due to climate change, more than 30% of beef animals have been
swept away due to drought. Drought has caused the drying of rivers, declining of the
water table, and field crops with the impact causing reduced veld growth. The recent
change in marketing rules for maize, which is a critical input in livestock, feed makes a
very difficult for livestock farmers. It also presents an opportunity to step into the
business.
4.5.1 Formulation
These feeds are formulated with the specific needs of the livestock they are intended for.
Here there is a need to niche and target, all sorts of farmers with interests. Pigs, cattle,
goats, and chicken feeds are the most common. The market is both wide and deep
because the area is a livestock-growing area. Additionally, the Farm takes advantage of
the road network that makes it easier to purchase ingredients from various provinces.
The formulation also takes into account the nutrient needs of the animals at the different
stages of their development. The idea is to establish feed processing unit for commercial
sale as well as feeding own stock.
4.5.2 INGREDIENTS
Sourcing the ingredients after the formulation is the next step. As a nation that is still
largely agro-based, there is a multitude of farmers involved in the production of the
various inputs. Grains such as maize as well as, soya bean, sorghum, barley, and rapoko
are popular in many mixes. These other grains may serve as a viable option for maize.
Vitamins and minerals such as calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, potassium, and sodium
among others. The amounts required and proportions depend on the formulation.
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MACHINERY
MARKETING
Farm marketing and sales will depend on the capacity to effectively carry it out. The three
essential channels are sales representatives, distribution channels, and online avenues.
Sales reps are essential as marketing to farmers is still very much a contact exercise. It
is not entirely difficult to find many farmers concentrated in one place as trade shows
Placing your products in distribution channels like shops that cater to livestock and
farmers is also essential. Online outlets cannot be discounted as technology has entered
more and more into every field. A combination of all the channels will greatly increase
sales opportunities. This could be a good additional business channel of grain that looks
to value add products as the sector faces many challenges including the two recent
statutory instruments that systematically banned foreign currency transactions and
regulated the sale of maize.
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PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION
The Afrostain planning team has several important contributions to make to
implementation. Firstly we need to ensure that the measures recommended in the plan
are correctly understood and put into practice by the implementing team. Representatives
of the planning team form an essential link between planning and implementation.
Related to this, the planning team can take a lead in coordinating the activities of the
implementing agencies and generally maintain communications between all parties to the
plan. Afrostain can assist in project building and this can include staff education and
training. There is a need for the use of software in managing pigs to reduce headaches
in record keeping because records are very important in this breeding.
The app is good for managing inventory, feed plans, batch profitability, expenses,
treatment records, health scores, and everything else with poultry or beef software.
Livestock farm management software makes the management of animals unbelievably
easier and more comfortable. Whether the business wants to grow or increase
productivity, the software has systems to achieve all goals with the right swine
management software!
In addition to this, this application is available across devices, such as Desktop, Web, and
Mobile platforms. Everything in this application works in sync. You can choose to store
your database on your premises or in the Cloud.
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Zoho Books (Accounting software)
Zoho books/ Quick books online accounting software that manages your finances,
automates business workflows and helps in the proposed business.
A drop in one of the other pillars often accompanies a decrease in financial performance.
By identifying the worst performing area and focusing on labor in there, it can be a more
efficient use of staff time. We have proposed wide this tool together with the use of SOPs
(Standards of operation) that can be used to benchmark your business and compare it to
both national data and other comparable businesses.
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HUMAN RESOURCE TRAINING
They are various collections of resources including videos, fact sheets, and websites to
help farm owners and managers train employees in general farm processes and advanced
farm operations. Topics include best practices for farm safety, tips on harvesting produce,
basic animal husbandry, basic pest management approaches, as well as, soil testing, and
field preparation for planting.
Experienced farm employees can benefit from this resource list as well, through
demonstrations of specialized pruning techniques, in-depth pest management
approaches, blossom thinning and vine canopy management, pig and pig feed balancing,
and much more.
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5.0 CONCLUSION
With all that has been mentioned above, the farm does not have many opportunities but
that does not limit the farmer. The consultant has suggested broiler, greenhouse
horticulture, and feed formulation as the best projects that can be done considering the
nature of your farm. Most farmers are poorly producing due to deficiencies in planning
and resource allocation. Some are getting nothing because they don't have an in-depth
knowledge of agricultural lands and how they should be depending on their capabilities.
The best remedy is to understand the basic characteristics of the farm and utilize them
accordingly. Surface analysis through digital elevation models and physical approaches
were used in these models to come up with the best ways that can be used for precision
farming. Investment opportunities in farming are very high in Zimbabwe. For a successful
farming business, project integration should be done so that the business will flow
smoothly without cash constraints.
On a small farm like this, land use must be maximized for the business to generate good
profits. More so, proper market research before producing is very important, especially
when doing pen fattening there is a need for you to know your local and external markets
like those in Harare since your farm is not far from the city. This may include following
market trends carefully so that sales are made during peak demands to avoid unnecessary
losses. We wish you a progressive growth of this business through the implementation
phase to a viable cash-generating farming business. We will be always available for
consultations in the future for a smooth implementation.
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