Supermarkets ration Sh100 maize flour purchases on buying stampede

Supermarkets have capped the number of packets of maize flour that customers can purchase in the wake of panic buying witnessed on Thursday as the price of the staple dropped to Sh100 as directed by the government under a short-term subsidy programme.

The uncertainty over the future has seen Kenyans buy large quantities of flour for stocking in anticipation that the government might not renew the four-week subsidy after the elections.

Willy Kimani, chief commercial officer at Naivas Supermarkets, said the retailer would cut the number of packets that one can be allowed to purchase to four. “Yes, we are (limiting) to a maximum of four pieces,” Mr Kimani told the Business Daily.

Announcing the subsidy on Wednesday, President Uhuru Kenyatta did not give a date when the programme would end. However, the strategy statement seen by the Business Daily earlier indicated that the scheme would last for only four weeks.

Mr Kenyatta announced in Nairobi this week after meeting with the millers and other key government officials at State House, saying processors had agreed to lower the cost from Sh205 to Sh100 a two-kilo packet.

He said the move was meant to protect consumers in the wake of the high cost of flour, which is beyond the reach of many Kenyans.

Meanwhile, the Retail Trade Association of Kenya (Retrak) said it had opened talks with suppliers to recover the Sh175 million they had paid for advance delivery of the commodity.

Retrak chief executive Wambui Mbarire said their members were holding 750 tonnes of unsold stocks by the time the subsidy was announced.

“We have commenced engagements with the respective maize meal suppliers to recover more than Sh175 million, which is a cumulative estimate of the higher price paid to them to facilitate deliveries,” she said.

The State had on Monday inked a deal with millers to cut the price of maize flour to Sh100 under a Treasury-backed subsidy.

However, Mr Kenyatta failed on Wednesday to disclose the amount of money the government will spend on this programme.

The Ministry of Agriculture said millers would be offered an undisclosed subsidy to bring down the cost of the staple and relief to consumers.