cropagora
About cropagora
We answer the one question every Zambian farmer asks before they sell: what's my crop worth today?
Why we exist
A farmer chooses what to plant, when to sell, and which market to travel to, and usually does it blind. The price a farmer actually gets at the gate is the one number nobody publishes. So the first buyer at the roadside sets it, and a long trip to the wrong market can cost more than it earns.
It is worst right after harvest, when everyone is selling at once and prices sag. A farmer who knows the going rate can hold, spread the load across markets, or push back on a low offer. A farmer who doesn't simply takes what is offered. That gap in information is what we set out to close.
cropagora publishes that number every day. Open the going rates and you can see what your maize, soya, tomatoes or onions are fetching at each market, before you decide anything. Knowing the price is what turns taking an offer into negotiating one.
Why farm-gate, and not the price in town?
You will see crop prices quoted in the news and in town markets, but those are retail prices: what a shopper pays after transport, traders and mark-ups have been added. A farmer never sees that money. The number that matters to you is the farm-gate price, which is what a buyer actually pays at the market or the roadside for what you grew.
It is lower than the retail price, and it is the one almost nobody bothers to publish. That is exactly the number cropagora leads with, every time. Where we show a national or survey figure, we label it plainly as context, never as what you should expect to be paid.
What cropagora does
Daily going rates
The farm-gate price for every major crop, updated daily, so you know what to charge and whether an offer is fair.
Which market today?
The price at each market hub, side by side. The gap between markets is what a trip is really worth.
When to plant, when to sell
Seasonal price patterns and store-versus-sell guidance, so you can aim for the window that pays best.
Price alerts
Follow a crop and get a message when its price moves, so you can act without watching the board all day.
Buy & Sell
Post your produce and reach buyers directly, or see what farmers near you are asking.
Crop & animal check
Send a photo of a sick plant or animal and get a first read on what might be wrong and what to do next.
Where our prices come from
We are careful about numbers, because a wrong price costs a farmer real money. Every figure on cropagora comes from one of three sources, and we always say which one.
cropagora market reports
Prices seen at markets by the reporters we work with and logged every day. This is the freshest read on what buyers are actually paying.
Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) bulletin
The national market-bulletin average, a figure that sits close to the farm gate. It is the best published guide to what a commodity is worth across the country.
Food Reserve Agency (FRA) floor
The government's guaranteed minimum price for maize and grain. No market should pay below it.
What we don't do is dress up retail prices as farm-gate, or publish a figure we can't stand behind. If there isn't an honest going rate for a crop yet, we say so.
How a farmer uses cropagora
- 1Check the going rate for your crop before you sell anything.
- 2Compare what different markets are paying, and work out whether the trip is worth it.
- 3Look at the season to decide whether to sell now or store and wait for a better price.
- 4When you are ready, post your produce on Buy & Sell and reach buyers directly.
- 5Follow a crop so you get a message when its price moves, instead of checking every day.
What we stand for
Real numbers only
No invented prices. Every figure is sourced and labelled.
Farm-gate, not retail
The price a farmer gets, not the price a shopper pays.
Transparent about sources
You always know whether a number is a market report, an average, or a floor.
Built for Zambia
Local crops, local markets, and local units like meda, box and the 50 kg bag.
Where we're headed
cropagora is early, and we are honest about it. Today we cover a handful of markets and the main crops, and we add more as we go. The aim is simple and ambitious: a reliable, daily farm-gate price for every major crop in Zambia, reaching every farmer who needs it and not only those with a smartphone.
That means price alerts by SMS, more markets, more crops, and over time a price record deep enough that a farmer, a buyer or a lender can trust it. If you want to help us get there, whether you trade at a market we don't yet cover or you just have a suggestion, we would like to hear from you.
Who it's for
Zambian smallholder farmers come first. They are the ones deciding what their harvest is worth. Buyers, agro-dealers and vets are part of it too, because cropagora is also a place to trade, ask questions, and get a crop or animal checked. Built in Zambia, for Zambian farmers.
Get in touch
Questions, a market we should be covering, or prices you'd like to report from your area? We'd love to hear from you.
hello@cropagora.com