The Farmer ZW

The Farmer ZW We are farmers in Zimbabwe, sharing our journey, challenges and wins. Join us as we build a smarter, more sustainable way to farm in Zimbabwe and beyond!

We’re passionate farmers raising pigs, goats, and Black Australorp roadrunner chickens, while also producing Black Soldier Fly (BSF) larvae and Azolla for sustainable feed. This page is all about sharing our farming journey, learning, and growing together with the community.

07/05/2026

Looking for a plot for rental with
1. Pig Infrastructure
2. Chicken houses
3. Accommodation
4. Storerooms
5. Goat pens
Number 1 being priority
+263 711627261

Halfway to the market picture(73kgs feed per pig consumed as of now:pigs Bought at an average of 9.5kgs)Sometimes farmer...
01/05/2026

Halfway to the market picture(73kgs feed per pig consumed as of now:pigs Bought at an average of 9.5kgs)

Sometimes farmers fail to reach the market with good weights because they trust workers too much.

In some cases, the feed you believe was eaten by the pigs is not actually what they consumed.

That’s when you end up saying a pig ate 200kg of feed but only produced a 45kg carcass — and you get frustrated.

If you are not always on-site, install cameras, farmers.

Our advantage is that we are present on the farm. But even then, a worker found an opportunity to short us on feed because he noticed that we only recorded the feed going into the pens.

He then started stealing from the storeroom, not knowing that we conduct stocktaking.

When we did stocktaking, we found that 84kg of feed was missing.

We later discovered that one of our staff members had been secretly selling the stockfeed — he was actually looking for his own clients.

Instead of focusing on getting rich with pigs, let's focus on protecting the pig economy.Pachinzvimbo chekukoshesa kupfu...
29/04/2026

Instead of focusing on getting rich with pigs, let's focus on protecting the pig economy.

Pachinzvimbo chekukoshesa kupfuma neNguruve ,ngatikoshesei kuchengetedza Hupfumi hwenguruve

1st Morning delivery to the market in search of customersIt took me 3½ hours to sell 90%Evening market is the quick one ...
28/04/2026

1st Morning delivery to the market in search of customers
It took me 3½ hours to sell 90%
Evening market is the quick one for vegetables

24/04/2026

Age: 3 Months 4 Days
Started at 9.5kg (5 weeks old)
Current average: 40kg

Came across the attached picture in a group and thought of how we got were we are
The benchmark is measuring against is 3.5 months:

Poor feeding: 20–25kg

Average feeding: 25–35kg

Good feeding: 35–45kg

Commercial level: 45–55kg

👉 At just 3 months 4 days, we are already sitting at 40kg average.

That means:
We are already within the “good feeding” range meant for 3.5 months — with days still left.

On our first batch, we couldn’t reach these weights.
The common belief was:
“Home-mixed feed can’t compete with commercial feed.”

But we didn’t accept that.

We understood that big farms don’t rely on magic—
They rely on:
✔ Correct nutrient balance
✔ Consistency in feeding
✔ Proper feed utilization

So we focused on mastering those.

No feed mixer.
No commercial feed.
Just understanding nutrition and applying it properly.

Now the results are clear:

👉 We’ve reached 3.5-month performance before 3.5 months
👉 Using home-mixed feed

And we’re still pushing forward. 📈🔥

Day 45Pig weighing outcomeSTAGE 1 – EARLY GROWER PERFORMANCE 🐖📈We moved into the early grower phase using our balanced h...
22/04/2026

Day 45
Pig weighing outcome
STAGE 1 – EARLY GROWER PERFORMANCE 🐖📈
We moved into the early grower phase using our balanced home mix and below are our weights after finishing Stage 1 feed

🐖 Weights (kg)
Pig 1 – 45
Pig 2 – 35
Pig 3 – 43
Pig 4 – 43
Pig 5 – 42
Pig 6 – 40
Pig 7 – 46
Pig 8 – 35
Pig 9 – 40
Pig 10 – 33
Pig 11 – 39
Pig 12 – 43
Pig 13 – 38
Pig 14 – 34

We started feeding stage 1 at an average of 27.1kgs 9 days ago.
✅ Feed used: 363kg (≈ 7.26 bags)
✅ Cost per bag: $23.72
Starting Average weight: 27.1kgs
Average Weight reached: 39.7kgs
Average Weight gained: 12.6kgs per pig
FCR =2.2
🧪 Nutrition per 50kg bag:
Protein: 19–20% | Energy: 13.5–14 MJ/kg
Fat: 4–5% | Fibre: 4–6%
Calcium: 0.65–0.85% | Phosphorus: 0.55–0.65%
(Ingredients:Maize, Wheatbran,Soymeal,Maxipack premix)
🔥 Designed for fast lean growth while controlling feed cost

Day 44 🐖🔥Guess the weights 👇We’re weighing them tomorrow as they enter Stage 2 feeding (Main Grower Phase) — where serio...
21/04/2026

Day 44 🐖🔥
Guess the weights 👇
We’re weighing them tomorrow as they enter Stage 2 feeding (Main Grower Phase) — where serious growth begins.
Started at ~9.5–11kg average.
Feeding Program:
Wet home mix (maize + soymeal + wheatbran + Maxipack premix mixed with water to improve intake and reduce wastage)
For the past 14 days they’ve been consuming 2kg per pig per day:
• 0.7kg – 7am
• 0.4kg – 11am
• 0.4kg – 3pm
• 0.5kg – 6/7pm
Spreading feed across the day prevents long hunger periods, reducing stress and fighting.
This helps pigs use energy for growth and feed conversion, not unnecessary activity.
From feeding:
• Feed starts leaving the stomach within 30–60 minutes
• Stomach empties in ~4–6 hours
⚠️ Overfeeding or long gaps can reduce efficiency and lead to fat instead of lean growth.
Stage 2 is where most weight gain and frame development happens — management here determines final carcass results.
👉 Drop your guesses below

Nursery bedsRed onion Robson r**e vegetablesTsunga paida plus vegetables
20/04/2026

Nursery beds
Red onion
Robson r**e vegetables
Tsunga paida plus vegetables

Day 39 of fatteningTikuzama Home mix feed inoita kana ukanzwisisa science dzenguruve nedzechikafu.Tamba zvakanaka ne Nut...
16/04/2026

Day 39 of fattening
Tikuzama

Home mix feed inoita kana ukanzwisisa science dzenguruve nedzechikafu.
Tamba zvakanaka ne Nutrition

Home mix(Maize, Soymeal,Wheatbran, maxipack Premix)
pakurima

Our open gilts Ranging 115 to 135kgs
16/04/2026

Our open gilts
Ranging 115 to 135kgs

Here is the rest of our horticulture section
14/04/2026

Here is the rest of our horticulture section

Address

Marondera

Telephone

0718524395

Website

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