Cattle Banned at Zimbabwe Ag Show

Farmers expected to get the market value of at least double the government's price on commercial prime beef per kilogram and up to five times the fixed price on peasant-raised cows.

The government had waived its fixed price on cattle for the long-awaited auction of about 160 animals, which was widely publicized in state media as one of the main attractions of the annual Harare Agricultural Show.

Show officials said they were notified at the last minute the auction would not be allowed to go ahead.

Most of the cattle were from peasant farms within about 100 kilometers, or 60 miles, of the showground arena.

"We have been tricked. We have brought our cattle here to make it look good for the politicians. It is to pretend things are getting better," said Freddy Vera, a small-scale farmer.

The livestock exhibit that included pigs, sheep, guinea fowl and chickens, was the biggest for several years. President Robert Mugabe had a dozen cattle on show from his Gushungo farm in his home district in Zvimba, 50 kilometers, or 30 miles, southwest of Harare.

The show chose an official theme this year on the revival of farming after seven years of political and economic turmoil following the often-violent seizures of thousands of white-owned commercial farms that began in 2000 and disrupted the agriculture-based economy.

Vera said some of the livestock exhibitors borrowed money for stock feed for standard fattening of their animals after the price waiver for the exhibit and auction was announced.

Buyers from hotels and restaurants planned to start bidding for top grade meat at double the price paid to farmers by the state slaughter monopoly of about 130,000 Zimbabwe dollars -- the equivalent of $8.50 or 6.25 euros at the official exchange rate -- a kilogram (2.2 pounds), show officials said.

The authorities "don't want it shown what cattle are really worth and why there's no meat out there," said one rancher who asked not to be identified.

Village cattle would likely have fetched bids of five times the government price in the meat-starved nation, he said.

In June, the government ordered price reductions of about half on all goods and services in a bid to tame official inflation of 7,634 percent, the highest in the world.

Independent estimates put real inflation at closer to 25,000 percent, and the International Monetary Funds has forecast it reaching 100,000 percent by the end of the year.

Cornmeal, bread, meat, milk, eggs and other staples have disappeared from stores and supermarkets and acute shortages have fueled a thriving black market in scarce foodstuffs, often selling at more than five times official prices.

The agriculture show is scheduled to be officially opened Friday by President Teodoro Obiang Ngeuma of the oil-rich West African nation of Equatorial Guinea.

Amid its increasing international isolation, Zimbabwe has signed an extradition treaty and a series of trade deals with Equatorial Guinea since a group of mercenaries linked to a coup plot to overthrow Obiang were arrested in Harare in 2004.

Show officials said some 40,000 visitors passed through the gates on Wednesday, nearly double the number on the same day last year.

Many bars and restaurants across the Zimbabwean capital have run out of supplies, but in sharp contrast, food, drink and cotton candy stands were thriving at the Harare Exhibition Park showground. The sole beverage maker said it was delivering 900 24-bottle cases of beer and soft drinks to the show each day over the six day event.