Campbell
Costello,
flying
vet
Zimbabwe,
formerly
Rhodesia,
had
an
undulant
journey
through
the
70s
and
80s
meandering
between
a
“bush-war”
and
independence.
Zimbabwe’s
post-independence
was
marked
by
periods
of
progress
and
set-back
with
significant
political
and
economic
landscape
shifts.
So
it
felt
like
quite
the
oxymoron
standing
on
my
mate’s
farm
–
15,000
pecan
trees
(planting
started
in
2018),
and
1000
head
or
so
of
cattle
grazing
under
centre
pivots.
Dr
Jeremy
is
a
world
renowned
equine
surgeon
mate
of
mine;
we
vetted
Derbies
in
Mongolia
and
Argentina
over
the
years.
He’s
hung
the
scalpel
up
to
build
projects
and
equity
–
it
was
incredible
to
see
his
vision
before
me
as
we
sipped
coffee
on
the
top
of
a
red-soil
ridge
about
40-odd
kms
out
of
Bulawayo.
Dr
Jeremy’s
family
had
farmed
next
door
for
over
a
century.
Family
members
are
buried
there,
albeit
they
had
been
“moved
on”
in
the
late
90s
during
an
illustrious
period
of
African
land
reform.
What
unfolded
was
agricultural
enterprises
being
run
into
the
ground
–
put
plainly,
people
started
starving.
But
as
the
old
colloquialism
goes
“You
don’t
grow
when
you’re
comfortable”
and
it
appears
that
farming
and
agriculture
is
now
welcomed
back
to
postcodes
that
had
shunned
its
certain
principles
previously.
But
farming
in
Africa
doesn’t
come
without
its
challenges
–
sure
there’s
threats
from
foot
and
mouth,
and
lumpy
skin
but
there’s
the
very
African-esque
clashes
between
“centre
pivot
guards”
and
miners.
As
the
price
of
gold
skyrockets
globally,
so
does
the
thirst
for
its
procurement
–
locals
go
into
the
bush
and
start
digging,
even
if
it
means
going
onto
a
farm.
What
is
a
centre-pivot
guard?
Literally
staff
who
sleep
and
boil
a
billy
with
the
farming
plant
at
night
and
make
sure
it
doesn’t
get
stolen.
Dr
Jeremy
elaborated
that
they
have
had
to
burr
the
centre-pivot
gearbox
bungs
off
because
the
oil
would
be
stolen
out
of
them,
which
had
resulted
in
multiple
gearboxes
seizing
on
the
pivots.
You
literally
can’t
write
this
stuff…
What
brought
me
to
Africa?
I
had
been
giving
lectures
at
the
African
Cattle
Vets
conference
on
bovine
trichomoniasis
and
the
world’s
first
approach
to
mobile
testing.
The
Africans
have
been
battling
this
disease
for
some
time
and
attempted
to
get
more
calves
on
the
ground
–
the
recent
FMD
outbreaks
had
also
been
a
headache.
Luckily
my
portable
machines
can
be
used
for
that
too
–
the
Africans
are
rejoicing
on
these
solutions!
Source:
Zimbabwe’s
agricultural
revival
amid
challenges
|
Queensland
Country
Life
|
QLD
Post
published
in:
Featured