One of the cattle farmers in Chikwawa District Rashid Rahim Issa has advised farmers to migrate from dependence on chemical fertilisers to cattle manure to boost yields and soil fertility.

Speaking in an interview on Monday, he said smallholder farmers can do well in their farming if they use dried feedlot cattle manure to replace chemical fertilisers.

He said: “The fertilisers mostly used by farmers have three fixed types of minerals such as phosphorous, nitrogen and potassium while the dried feedlot cattle manure has micro-nutrients which feed both the plants and also rehabilitates soil.

“If the farmers can go organic, they can only add Urea for multiplication and abandon the first type of fertilisers which help plants to grow.”

Willard in her rice field where
she applies cattle manure

Issa, who is based at Mthobwa Village in Senior Chief Ngabu, said he supplies cattle manure of not less than 200 metric tonnes based on the orders, adding that he has been supplying the product to Illovo Sugar (Malawi) Nchalo Estate for about 10 years.

Another lead farmer, Nelly Willard based at Govala Trading Centre, said in the past, she has been harvesting not more than 20 bags of rice from one hectare.

But after switching to dried feedlot cattle manure, she now harvests more than 40 bags of rice.

One of the vendors who sell manure in the district, Gunde Fred M’manga, said cattle manure is big business.

In an interview on Monday, Shire Valley Area Development Division programmes manager Taurayi Mlewah said manure is key to boosting crop output.

She challenged farmers in Chikwawa and Nsanje districts to prudently use the cattle manure to boost crop yields.

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