FNB Zambia offers a wide variety of financing products to small and medium sized businesses, and maintains a special focus on agriculture and agricultural businesses. They started off in 2009 and have 21 contact points all over the country. The AgriTech-team is Joe Syafunko, Cheyo Mwenechanya and Yokonia Ngoma. Xander Pieterse (back) and Quintus Grobler (right) are from ProAgri Zambia.

Malcolm Ross (middle) is a Tuli farmer on Milimani Estate in the Chisamba district. Two of his employees, Sydney Manda, Cattle Ranger and Steven Saili, Senior Supervisor, are helping him at the show. “My involvement with Tulis started in 1995 when I bought commercial bulls and cows from a farm in Zambia. In 1999 we imported seven Tuli bulls from Zimbabwe and in 2010 I imported seven bulls from South Africa.”

Green 2000 Limited is the distributer of the USA-manufactured pivot irrigation system, Reinke, in Zambia and started their operations in 2000. “Reinke systems are light, durable and have less complications than your average brand. We carry all the critical spares and we can deliver on the farm within one week. Many of our machines work at state departments like the prisons, police and army, to grow food for own consumption and exports,” David Nganga, Sales Manager, says. David Nganga, Patrick Tembo, John Kalambata and Susan Shileshe are ready to assist any enquiring farmer. Xander Pieterse, Sales Consultant at ProAgri Zambia, stands behind them.

Poltek is a distributor of any product imaginable for the poultry industry through Livestock Services. Their impressive and practical exhibition in the Livestock Services tent drew a lot of attention.

Jakkie Oosthuizen from Senter 360 has a passion for farming in Africa. “I am very excited about Zambia and here is a lot of potential if you look at the natural resources and the local need for food. Up to now we serviced Zambia from South Africa, but we are planning to move here, and to establish service points all over the country to offer peace of mind to our clients. Our structures are 65% stronger than the international standard and we offer a ten year warranty.” His wife, Anita, his son, Nico, and his daughter-in-law, Chanel, are ready to help him promoting the Senter 360 brand.

Isuzu is supporting the Zambian farmer in every aspect. Walther Wasamunu, Senior Mechanic, demonstrates the capabilities of the Isuzu braking system, Lilia Samui is the Marketing Manager; Janine Stuart is the Standards Coordi-nator and Jackie Kazembe is the Sales Representative at GM Lusaka.

Delta Auto and Equipment is based in Lusaka and Kitwe to distribute the affordable Sani construction equipment and Foton trucks and pick-ups. The new 8-series Foton medium sized truck boasts with a 4,5 litre Cummins engine. The sides are 500 mm high and it can transport almost any produce from the farm to the market and items back to the farm. Jessie Nankolongo is Acting Sales Manager.

Wynand Ueckermann from AfricWater is an engineer who designs complete irrigation systems and supplies plastic piping for above-ground quick-coupling systems and drip line systems. His products are based on a 75 year old concept from South Africa. “We replace metal pipes, which are heavy and expensive, with HDP (high density polyethylene) pipes and I sell a thickness range from 50 mm to 160 mm with all the accessories necessary to design a system. We design on Google Earth with precision down to 1 cm, and although we do not need to visit the farm during the design stage, we supply after sale services.

Zanaco, the returning diamond sponsor of AgriTech, offers a wide range of financial solutions for farmers, big and small. His Excellency, President Edgar Lungu, paid their stall and their CEO, Bruce Dick, a special visit to find out how they can assist farmers with their financing options.

Graig Shiel is the owner of Chulu Borans. Chulu is the biggest Boran breeder in Zambia and Graig has cattle in Mkushi and Chingaga. Chulu also has studs in South Africa and Namibia and has all the successful bloodlines that South Africa and Kenya have to offer. The Boran breed originated in Kenya and they have been in Zambia since the 1940’s.

One of the benefits of strip-till in Africa is that the area outside the cultivated strip retains the moisture for a longer period to become readily available for the crops during dry spells. This is why the 1tRIPr from Orthman is extremely effective on the continent. Craig Ivins is the Marketing Manager of Orthman, who distributes their equipment through AFGRI.

Although this is a German brand, LEMKENimplements have proven themselves thoroughly in Southern Africa. This 6 m Ruben 9 is most popular for its versatility. It is used to cultivate the soil before planting and forms a very even seedbed. “All our LEMKEN implements are assembled in South Africa before they are transported to Zambia. Smaller parts can be sent directly from Germany if necessary,” says Blackie Swart, Area Sales Manager of LEMKEN Zambia.

AFGRI established a large footprint in Zambia and supplies many big name brands in the country, like John Deere, Falcon, LEMKEN, Orthman, Rovic Leers and JCB Agricultural Equipment. This Gator 825i utility vehicle from John Deere is the farmer’s best solution for quick and affordable transport on the farm. The AFRGRI team is present in all the major regions in Zambia, and very eager to assist a farmer with custom-made solutions for the challenges on his farm.

Quail-farmers have to look no further than Bien Donne for superior genetics. They developed their own profitable breed for Zambia over many years. They used to import 10 000 eggs a year from France but it became too expensive, “so we selected the bigger quails and started our own breed which is bigger, lays more eggs, produces more meat and grows much faster. We can produce quails ready for slaughter in 32 days, Jean Claude Favard says. They also produce 100 000 quails every month to meet the local demand. Frans Favard is the owner of Bien Donne Genetics and he explains the ins and outs of his breed to interested farmers.

Agri Wes distributes Claas and Väderstad equipment in Zambia. Nikita Herman is in Sales and Events, Willem Williams is in their Sales and Marketing Department, Nico de Kock is the CEO and Brian Mumford is Area Manager. “The show is gaining momentum and the overall focus on what is important for us is getting better. One of our popular harvesters, the Crop Tiger (smaller than the big 430 Tucano behind them), which is manufactured in India, is perfect for rice, wheat and soya and we are in the process of designing a maize header as well,” Nico de Kock says.

Ruben Mushabati and O’Brian Mwansa are Technical Field Officers, Brian Royston is an Area Manager and Kobus Smith is Marketing Director for Omnia.
Kobus Smith says: “We registered in Zambia in 1992 and we have two divisions. “Omnia Commercial concentrates on large-scale farmers and we have sales representatives and area managers all over the country to assist farmers with technical advice and support as well. All our sales personnel are agricultural graduates. Our other division is Omnia Small Scale which concentrates on small-scale farmers. Previously we supplied small-scale farmers via the government on a tender basis. Our current aim is to establish our own cash and carry distribution points all over the country to sell directly to the small-scale farmers,” he says.

If you put the first letters of the names, Sharad, Ashok, Rohan and Oza together, you get SARO. They are the owners of the company that distributes a wide variety of agricultural equipment, from solar panels to tractors. “We are always looking for quality brand names which are popular. One of the key aspects of everything that we sell, is that we as SARO offer the technical expertise, training, backup and the spares, which is very important,” says Calvin Salah, General Marketing Manager of SARO. The SARO team demonstrates how one of their hammer mills can reduce tree branches to usable wood chips.