As is common with any farmer who wants to see financial gains from their efforts, there is a tendency by poultry farmers to spend a lot of time, energy and resources on the production side of things. This is understandable given the fact that many people involved with farming are so in love with the production side of it that they overlook some aspects that are able to make them financially successful.

The challenge however comes when it is time to put the chickens on the market. Often the poultry farmer struggles with the selling side of his business. Poultry production can be a business like any other.

Business basics apply to poultry production right from setting up to running the business.

One of the vital aspects of any business is marketing, without which the farmer might not have anywhere to sell his or her chicken.

This podcast is also available as a blog post here: Ways to Market Your Poultry in Zambia 

This week, we highlight the work of Dr. Chapwa Kasoma who is a crop scientist, researcher and consultant. Dr. Kasoma is leading the fight against Fall Armyworms as she has dedicated the past four years doing research on crop varieties that can withstand various stresses including the Fall Armyworms. She decided to venture into this research after seeing first-hand the devastation that Fall Armyworms had caused in various parts of Zambia and specifically on small scale farmers.

This podcast is also available as a blog post here: Agriculture Scientist Leads the Fight against Fall Armyworms

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a major global threat of increasing concern. It can occur naturally as all microbes can adapt to their surrounding environment. However, it is exacerbated by inappropriate and excessive use of antimicrobials in both human healthcare and the agriculture sector.

Antimicrobials are used in terrestrial animal production practices to preserve animal and public health (e.g. to prevent and control zoonoses), but also as growth promoters at a sub-therapeutic level.

This podcast is also available as a blog post here: Antimicrobial Resistance and Animal Production

Protein expression refers to a way of biotechnological process in which certain proteins are synthesized, regulated, and modified in living organisms by manipulation of gene expression.

The first protein expression platform was a prokaryotic system through Escherichia coli (E. coli), which was later followed by advancements in other expression systems such as yeast, insect, algae, and mammalian.

This podcast is also available as a blog post here: Launch of Novel Platforms and Technologies to Pave the Way for Future of Protein Expression 

Not only is she one of the only two commercial snail farmers in the country but through value addition; she maximizes the use of the snail by extracting the slime, uses the snail as meat and also uses the shells as a source of calcium in feed.

This podcast is also available as a blog post here: Meet Precious Muka Botha, a Young Pioneer Snail Slime Farmer 

At the age of only 24, Elizabeth Maanda Sianga (popularly known as The Young Farmer Maanda), grew up in a farming family of two elder sisters and is the last born. Even though she grew up in a farm environment, her main interest was medicine, but all that changed when she met Zambia’s heavy weight in meat production, Zambeef.

This podcast is also available as a blog post: Young, Beautiful and Proud To Be a Farmer 

The simplicity or complexity of dealing with livestock is primarily determined by the time you spend with them. The more you stay closer the more you quickly realize if there's anything abnormal!

This podcast is also available as a blog post here: What Each Livestock Farmer Needs To Know To Maintain Healthy Livestock! 

Over the years the production of Sweet potatoes (Ipomoea batatas) as a commercial crop in Zimbabwe has been increasing due to its numerous advantages as compared to other root and tuber crops. The crop has minimal input requirements yet yields highly. Sweet potatoes store well and can be a famine reserve crop especially with the increased effects of climate change being currently experienced in Zimbabwe. The water requirements of the crop are minimal compared to cereals, which is the main source of carbohydrates in the local diet.

This podcast is also available as a blog post here: Production of Sweet Potatoes as a Commercial Crop in Zimbabwe

Given we really haven’t much warm weather it is not too late to plant Eggplant. Eggplant is considered to have originated in India where it continues to grow wild. This spiny, bitter, orange, pea-sized fruit has been cultivated throughout India and China for more than 1500 years. As trade routes opened, eggplant was introduced to Europe by the Arabs and transported to Africa by the Persians. The Spaniards carried it with them to the New World and, by the early 1800’s, both white and purple varieties could be found in American gardens.

This podcast is also available as a blog post here: Eggplant (Aubergine) Cultivation 

The trend of anti-microbial free feeding programs and the adoption of other such approaches is increasing among poultry, cattle, and other livestock animals. And in this subject, direct fed microbial or DFM is one of the most popularly growing methods to boost the health of livestock.

Also referred to as probiotics, DFM is a product consist of live and feasible microorganisms such as bacteria or yeast that are most commonly provided to the livestock. This in turn aids in altering the gastrointestinal flora and overall health of the animal. In the past few years, the awareness regarding DFM has immensely increased among pet and cattle owners. Owing to this, their adoption of direct fed microbial has significantly increased for livestock. In a report published by Allied Market Research,the global direct fed microbial market is anticipated to hit $1.77 billion by 2026.

This podcast is also available as a blog post here: Direct Fed Microbial To Perk Up Healthful Living for Cattle, Poultry, and Other Livestock