As a pig farmer, you know that when your pigs grow well, your business also grows. For your pigs to grow optimally, you need to give them the best feed possible. This is why it makes good business sense to partner up with the market leaders in the feed industry in Zambia, Novatek.

After more than two decades in the engineering profession, Bwembya Chikwanda saw a commercial opportunity in providing good meat to the expanding middle income market in Zambia. He embarked on this new career path with ten sows on a piece of land on the Chifwema road, and now he has 80 sows, with plans to expand to 300 sows.

“If there is one piece of advice I can give other new farmers, then it is to make maximum use of the information provided by companies such as Novatek. I adhere to the Novatek feeding programme with excellent results; even better than expected,” says Bwembya.

The target is to grow a newborn piglet in 24 weeks (6 months) to reach a good slaughtering size of 100 kg. With good management practices and good feed Bwembya has managed to achieve this weight in 21 to 22 weeks.

“The longer you keep your pigs, the more they cost you, because they keep on eating but they don’t continue growing at the same rate,” he warns.

Managing your farm

An important part of the management programme is to provide good housing facilities for the pigs to maintain their health through all seasons. Temperature control is essential. Bwembya’s pigs stay in well ventilated facilities with a high roof and large openings to allow movement of air to cool down the pigs in summer. In winter these openings can be closed to keep the heat in.

Also essential is that the pigs should always have clean drinking water available. The facility also needs to be cleaned out regularly and waste must be removed.

The right feed at the right time

Bwembya buys maize from other local farmers and uses Novatek’s concentrates to mix his own feed. The secret is to use the right concentrate formulation at the right time in the production process.

The needs of lactating sows differ from dry sows and boars, and Novatek provides a concentrate for each group.

After the piglets are born, they drink their mothers’ milk for the first two weeks, getting in all the goodness nature developed over millenia.

After that, Bwembya makes sure they get everything they need to grow fast and stay healthy. He says: “One of the attractions of the Novatek products is good feed conversion rates that helps with maximum weight gain for the pigs at their different stages of growth.”

This is the programme he follows:

Week 2 to 5: Novatek Creep.

Week 6 to 10: Novatek Weaner.

Week 11 to 16: Novatek Grower.

Week 17 until they leave the farm: Novatek Finisher.

The business side of things

Bwembya’s largest customer is Master Fork, a pork processing facility only 15 km away. Saving on transport costs is a major consideration when you start off with any farming enterprise, Bwembya warns.

After having been in a management position in engineering for fifteen years, he also brought another valuable lesson to the farm and that is to keep your debt levels as low as possible. “It is much better to grow organically, even if you grow slower. The cost of borrowing is high and it can easily get out of control.”

By following his own advice and listening to the experts in the field, his farming experience has been very positive. He says: “It has been a learning curve for me, but it is fulfilling and exciting once you get into it. It becomes quite addictive!”

You can also grow your farming business with the help of experts. Contact Wiehan Visagie at wiehan.visagie@novatek.co.zm or +260-979-763-250.