A close friend, who has been farming as a livestock farmer for years, recently asked me what the biggest motivation should be for him to turn to crop farming. 

According to him, crop farming was not as encouraging and does not accord the same level of satisfaction as that which is derived from animal husbandry. 

I never offered a response to his assertions – until now.

I do not claim to be an expert on crop production or that mode of farming in any way. 

But if what Agribank’s Hanks Saisai and other experts in that field tell us in their writings is anything to go by, then I have a case against my learned pastoralist. 

This is how I see it: crop farming has diverse benefits and advantages that may – on a one-to-one basis – even outweigh those derived from livestock farming.

The previous sentence might have struck a tone that attempts to compare the two modes of farming to determine the best one, which was deliberate. 

The point I am making here is that we should stop trying to compare these two modes of farming, as they are not alike in any way; they are light years apart from each other. 

Attempting to draw a comparison between crop and livestock farming is what has gotten us to where we are in the first place – nowhere!

The idea should not be about practising one or the other mode of farming; it should be about looking at each mode on its own to better determine its qualities and attributes without being overshadowed by personal preferences. 

Judging a fish by its ability or lack thereof of climbing a tree is counterproductive – a fish was never meant to climb a tree – let alone live out of the waters. 

What if you could do both modes of farming? 

Why not?

Ardent livestock farmers, who have developed years of bonds with their livestock, are hard to convince that crop farming could hold more financial benefits than livestock farming. 

The idea should, therefore, be on encouraging such farmers to rather diversify their farming as opposed than stating it as a case of ‘one or the other’. 

Livestock farmers need to be convinced of the nutritional value, and dietary and financial benefits of venturing into horticulture.

That means more extension officers who specialise in crop farming need to be made available in traditional livestock farming-dominated areas. 

They should be the ones driving the ‘revolution’ to influence livestock farmers to also venture into crop production, and it should not just be about a small vegetable garden at the back of the homestead, but a fully-fledged horticulture production with a variety of crops. 

As for satisfaction, well that is more of a personal choice – what brings satisfaction to one farmer might not necessarily bring the same level of satisfaction to another. 

Believe it or not, there are some farmers who derive joy from talking to pumpkins. 

Did I do justice to my friend’s questions on the motivation for crop farming?

Probably not in great detail, but the idea is that one must first learn to ‘love’ the new mode of farming by looking at what it can offer you. 

That way, you two could be ‘cropped’ from the same feather through eternity.

- tjatindi@gmail.com