Sept. 10, 2014
Last Mon. afternoon I had the privilege of visiting The Berry Farm, just down the road from AU. It is one of the few large, white-owned farms in this area that hasn't been taken over by war veterans as part of Mugabe's land allocation program. All too often these folks just move right on to the property, claim any equipment, etc. that is there, and literally force the owners off their land.
The Berry Farm (L'Amour) is operated by two brothers, Garath and Robert ~~ one oversees the dairy, and the other the crops of maize, wheat, silage, etc. By Zimbabwe standards it is huge, milking over 300 cows around the clock. This is all accomplished very scientifically, with special measured grains, etc.
These two young calves have been taken from their mother and will be held in separate pens such as these for about 90 days, always having their height, weight, etc. monitored. As they reach a certain growth level they are then moved to a larger area of the farm. They keep extremely detailed records of their birth and growth information, as they mature and begin to produce milk. There is one bull, but mostly they use artificial insemination.
Second stage of growth!
Almost ready to go to the milking barn!! Females are specially selected for bearing offspring, and are also kept on their own part of the farm. Much of the grain that is raised is baled and used for feed, along with added nutrients which are NOT GMO!!
These two brothers have already lost a portion of their farm. Robert is known to be an excellent mechanic, and I understand that the government brings most of their vehicles to him because he is so good! This keeps the brothers and their farm in "good graces" with the government officials! This repair service is free but is well worth whatever it costs. All the livestock seemed to be very well taken care of and treated like special commodities.
The milking barn was immaculate! Garath employs about 127 Zimbabwean workers, some of whom are highly trained to do what they do in keeping track of the amount of milk each cow produces, etc. He pays them a bonus at the end of each month if they have had perfect attendance. Since this is a 24-hour operation, he needs workers he can rely on to keep everything working smoothly. The milk is piped into cooling tanks, and then loaded on to milk trucks for the Dairybord Company, which produces butter, yogurt, and many other products.
This dial is Garath's way of keeping track of each cow from birth to death, their growth, milk production, etc., etc. You can see that it is very detailed and complex, but at a glance he can see the entire history of any particular cow. All the details really boggled my mind, but he has everything costed out and knows exactly the amount of fat and nutrient content each one produces. He has brought in specialists to help him improve the way everything operates. . . like his own "continuing education!" And he continues to make modifications and improvements.
The Health Dept. makes regular visits to be sure it is "up to snuff." Because it is one of the biggest dairies in the country, they have been pretty much left alone by the government.
The dairy itself doesn't make much money because the government doesn't pay much for the milk, and keeps a tight control over the pricing ~~ I believe he said he only makes a few cents per litre from Dairybord for raw milk! Always the entrepreneur, he turned his workshop into his own business! He went to South Africa and purchased this packaging machine which loads a specified amount of milk (lacto) into each package and seals it. Then they are put in crates and stored in two huge coolers. He actually makes more on this process than on the raw milk he sells! These small packages are sold/used in schools, by small vending companies, etc. It is very good, too!!
So, here is the morale dilemma ~~ Is it better to allow this large farm to continue to employ black Zimbabweans or to force these brothers to give up their farmland to war vets who feel they are entitled to it?? It's so sad to see so much land not being productive because those who received small parcels do not have resources, know-how, or experience to make it produce even enough to feed a family. What is "justice" in this situation?
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