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This week, Zimbabwe Farming explores making money by selling beef and meat in Harare. This article was first published by
Menard Matingwende on Startupbiz.co.zw, a Zimbabwean blog dedicated to
uplift entrepreneurs.
While many are complaining of the tough
economic conditions in Zimbabwe, others are making lots of money selling cattle
at Koala Park Abattoir, in Harare. The Abattoir is located along Seke Road
(Harare-Chitungwiza road).
There is also butchery at the Park, Koala Park
Butchery, which sells affordable meat, including beef, chicken and pork, and
many Harare and Chitungwiza residents flock to the park to buy the meat, as it
is cheap compared to other butcheries in Harare. Koala Park also supplies beef
to many butcheries around Harare. So they are always in need of cattle, and you
are assured that if you bring your cattle, they will buy them.
Everyday people deliver cattle to
Koala from all over Zimbabwe. So out of the many Abattoirs in Zimbabwe, why do
people love Koala Park? Koala Park Abattoir is not selective when it comes to
cattle; they take any beasts you bring. Some Abattoirs have many conditions
e.g. some only purchase a beast if it has a live weight of above 300Kg.
People
also prefer to sell to Koala because they will pay you within 24 hours, without
fail, compared to some Abattoirs which will give you your money after 2 or more
days. If you bring your cattle to Koala Park in the morning, you will be given
your cash before the end of the day. Koala Park Abattoir also has higher prices
compared to other Abattoirs, meaning you will get more money for your cattle.
As we always say, do not make the
mistake of going into this business or any other business just because someone
is doing it and he/she says it’s profitable. The purpose of this article is
just to give you the basics of how you can make money selling cattle at Koala.
You should carry out your own research before you venture into this business.
What
you need
Cattle
People in areas like Muzarabani and
Guruve have plenty of cattle. They are also in need of money for school fees,
food, groceries, clothes etc. They have cattle, but they do not have cash, so
they sell their livestock in order to get cash for their needs.
Because of the
large supply of cattle in those areas, and their need of cash, the prices of
the cattle are low. You can buy cattle in Muzarabani from as low as $150,
depending on its size and type. Usually the prices of most of the cattle are
from $150-$300, which is cheaper compared to other parts of the country.
Transport
You will have to hire lorries to
transport your cattle from Muzarabani to Koala Park,Harare. Transport is not a
problem, as there are many transporters who are in the business of transporting
cattle to Koala Park from Muzarabani every day. The transportation cost is $50
per head. Meaning that if you buy a beast at $150 in Muzarabani, the buying
price is actually $150+$50 = $200.
Police
Clearance and Veterinary permit
To be able to sell your cattle at
Koala Park Abattoir, you need a police clearance and veterinary permit. You get
these easily in Muzarabani, after purchasing the cattle. You have to put aside
$7/beast for the police clearance and veterinary permit. The transporters will
help you get the clearance and the permit.
Capital
To be profitable in this business,
you have to buy at least 7 beasts at a time. The more cattle you buy, the
better. You need a capital of at least $2000, to increase your chances of
getting high profits. If you have a good knowledge of cattle quality you can
even start with $1000 and still be very profitable.
Knowledge
of Cattle quality
The assumption underlying this
business model is that you can buy cattle cheaply in Muzarabani, which you can
sell at higher prices at Koala Park. When you bring your cattle to Koala Park,
they will slaughter it that same day, and grade the meat according to its
quality. So you will be paid according to the weight of the beef, and the
grade.
The grade of the beef will determine your profitability. There are 6
grades used at Koala, which are Manufacturing, which is the lowest quality
beef, followed by Economy, Commercial, Choice and Super beef, which is the
highest quality grade.
There is also a grade called Condemned, which is for the
cattle which would have been condemned because of sickness in the body. This
grade fetches an extremely low price, and you may end up in a loss if one of
your beasts is condemned, especially if you had a few beasts. So you have to be
very careful when buying the cattle. So if most of the cattle you buy are poor
quality, the beef of those poor quality cattle will be put in the manufacturing
grade, and you may end up in a loss or very little profit.
That is why it is
important that you buy at least 7 cattle at a time so that if some cattle fetch
low grades, some may also fetch high grades, and overall you will be in profit.
If you do not have good knowledge of cattle quality, it will be wise to hire
someone who is an expert at determining the quality of cattle by just looking
at it, and who is able to estimate the slaughtered weight of a beast. Some
people are really good at it, and if you hire such people, you will end up
buying high quality cattle, which will fetch high grades, and you will be very
profitable.
Negotiation
Skills
You need very good negotiation
skills, so that you buy the cattle at a low price in Muzarabani. That is why it
is essential to go with someone who has knowledge of determining the quality of
cattle, if you are not good at that. You will then be able to make rough
calculations, by estimating the weight of beef from the cattle, and its grade,
and thus the likely amount it is going to fetch at Koala Park.
And you then
determine the price you have to pay the people in Muzarabani in order to be
profitable, and you negotiate with that price in mind. Once you are into this
business, you will be able to make very good estimates of the money you are
going to get from Koala park, by just looking at the beast, without making any
calculations.
Koala
Prices
The prices at which Koala Park
Abattoir buys beef varies from time time. At the time of writing, the prices
for different grades of beef per KG were:
- Manufacturing: $2.40
- Economy: $3.05
- Commercial: $3.50
- Choice: $3.70
- Super: $4.40
- Condemned: $0.40
Profitability
People are making money at Koala
Park. The profitability sometimes is as high as 100%. For example if you buy
cattle in Muzarabani today for $2000(inclusive of transport costs), tomorrow
you may be having $4000 in your pocket.
This is possible because you can buy a
beast for $300 in Muzarabani, and sell it for $700 at Koala Park. Some are
losing money also, you may buy poor quality cattle for $2000, and you will get
only $1000 for the cattle from Koala Park, thus a loss of $1000.
The key to
profitability is being able to determine the quality of cattle, and having good
negotiation skills. Do you want to spin your money fast at Koala Park so that
you get enough capital to start the business you always dreamed of? Are you
willing to take the risks (remember there is a condemned grade)?
Comment below with any questions you
have concerning selling cattle at Koala Park business in Zimbabwe. Are you
already in this business? If so comment and tell us your experiences. Share
with us what you think about this business.
Source: www.startupbiz.co.zw
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