The Agricultural Technical and Extension Services (Agritex) department says it is urging farmers to destock due to deaths from tick-borne diseases and poor pastures at the start of the rainy season.
Midlands Provincial Crop and Livestock Officer Madeline Magwenzi said farmers should now consider destocking by selling some of their cattle to buy supplementary food.
“We are advising them on destocking, some of the cattle are now old and some no longer reproduce, so they should sell those ones ”, she said.
She said farmers have to do away with older or sickly cattle to generate funds to take care of the healthy ones.
“The condition of the animals range from poor, and good is here and there but there are animals in some communal areas that have some worms so our animals are in a poor state but even in that poor state we haven’t lost many”, said Magwenzi.
The department recently revealed that most cattle in communal lands are in a bad state due to depletion of grazing pastures caused by low rainfall received last season.
Early this year, there were reports that farmers particularly in Gokwe North and South as well as Mberengwa were selling cattle at giveaway prices due to shortage of pasture.
