Judith Phiri,Zimpapers Business HubWITH planting in full swing for the 2025/26 summer cropping season, the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) has called on seed houses to work closely with them and the media to raise awareness on counterfeit seeds which greatly affect farmers’ yields.Counterfeit seeds have become a serious challenge in the country during the cropping seasons and farmers have had to bear the brunt of crop failures, its implications also include economic losses that could cripple the agricultural sector.In an interview during a Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) Zimbabwe’s Bulawayo Chapter Advocacy Interaction Programme in Bulawayo on Wednesday, National police spokesperson, Commissioner Paul Nyathi, said the media was key to also educating the public.“We had a joint press conference with the Zimbabwe Seed Association on Monday in Harare. It is a fact, we have had a challenge in Bulawayo, Harare, Chegutu, Chivu and Wedza among other parts of the country where after last week’s rains, we had people, some of them operating hardware, some of them on street corners and some of them are moving agencies, who are offering fake seed to farmers,” he said.“Just imagine, seed which is supposed to be going for US$43, they sell it for US$20 for a 10 kilogramme (kg) bag. When people have got poor germination, they blame seed companies.
So we also want the media to assist and we have said the seed companies must work closely with the media and the police, so that we continue to educate Zimbabweans on how to identify genuine and original seed from fake ones.”He said on the packaging aspect, it was clear that the criminals were taking advantage of the packaging system.Commissioner Nyathi said there was need to continue raising awareness through campaigns.“Seed houses have got teams, here in Bulawayo they have a provincial team. They will be working closely with the police to conduct raids and to identify people who are selling fake seed.“We can only do it through the assistance of agronomists, so the police and the seed houses, they have got a team which is currently on the ground until mid-January. So by next week we will be publicising the number of suspects whom we have arrested last week throughout the country,” he added.“So definitely next week we will be giving you the figures and the exact places where the arrest would have been effected.”Meanwhile, in a previous interview, the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Permanent Secretary, Professor Obert Jiri, urged farmers to desist from acquiring agro-inputs from unregistered agro-dealers.“Farmers are urged to desist from buying agrochemicals from unregistered dealers.
They should be on high alert and verify the chemical’s name, trade name and company distributor, while also seeking further clarity where possible from agricultural experts.“Also, make use of the Agritex extension officers to get more information so that they avoid being accustomed to using banned agrochemicals,” he said.Leave a ReplyCancel reply Judith Phiri,Zimpapers Business HubWITH planting in full swing for the 2025/26 summer cropping season, the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) has called on seed houses to work closely with them and the media to raise awareness on counterfeit seeds which greatly affect farmers’ yields.Counterfeit seeds have become a serious challenge in the country during the cropping seasons and farmers have had to bear the brunt of crop failures, its implications also include economic losses that could cripple the agricultural sector.In an interview during a Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) Zimbabwe’s Bulawayo Chapter Advocacy Interaction Programme in Bulawayo on Wednesday, National police spokesperson, Commissioner Paul Nyathi, said the media was key to also educating the public.“We had a joint press conference with the Zimbabwe Seed Association on Monday in Harare. They should be on high alert and verify the chemical’s name, trade name and company distributor, while also seeking further clarity where possible from agricultural experts.“Also, make use of the Agritex extension officers to get more information so that they avoid being accustomed to using banned agrochemicals,” he said. WITH planting in full swing for the 2025/26 summer cropping season, the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) has called on seed houses to work closely with them and the media to raise awareness on counterfeit seeds which greatly affect farmers’ yields.
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Counterfeit seeds have become a serious challenge in the country during the cropping seasons and farmers have had to bear the brunt of crop failures, its implications also include economic losses that could cripple the agricultural sector. In an interview during a Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) Zimbabwe’s Bulawayo Chapter Advocacy Interaction Programme in Bulawayo on Wednesday, National police spokesperson, Commissioner Paul Nyathi, said the media was key to also educating the public. “We had a joint press conference with the Zimbabwe Seed Association on Monday in Harare.
It is a fact, we have had a challenge in Bulawayo, Harare, Chegutu, Chivu and Wedza among other parts of the country where after last week’s rains, we had people, some of them operating hardware, some of them on street corners and some of them are moving agencies, who are offering fake seed to farmers,” he said. “Just imagine, seed which is supposed to be going for US$43, they sell it for US$20 for a 10 kilogramme (kg) bag. So we also want the media to assist and we have said the seed companies must work closely with the media and the police, so that we continue to educate Zimbabweans on how to identify genuine and original seed from fake ones.” He said on the packaging aspect, it was clear that the criminals were taking advantage of the packaging system.Commissioner Nyathi said there was need to continue raising awareness through campaigns.
“Seed houses have got teams, here in Bulawayo they have a provincial team. They will be working closely with the police to conduct raids and to identify people who are selling fake seed. “We can only do it through the assistance of agronomists, so the police and the seed houses, they have got a team which is currently on the ground until mid-January. So by next week we will be publicising the number of suspects whom we have arrested last week throughout the country,” he added.
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