National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) Managing Director Joseph Kimote (left) and NCPB chairman Mutea Iringo during a media briefing at the board’s Nairobi offices on February 18, 2021.
Maize deliveries to National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) have doubled in the last two weeks as farmers increase their supplies after the agency raised the buying price by Sh200 last month.
NCPB Managing Director Joseph Kimote said the board has so far received 200,000 bags of 90 kilo bags of grain, up from 100,000 a fortnight ago.
NCPB is paying farmers Sh2,700 for a 90 kilo bag after reviewing the price from Sh2,500 in order to woo growers to supply them with grain.
Maize deliveries to National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) have doubled in the last two weeks as farmers increase their supplies after the agency raised the buying price by Sh200 last month.
NCPB Managing Director Joseph Kimote said the board has so far received 200,000 bags of 90 kilo bags of grain, up from 100,000 a fortnight ago.
NCPB is paying farmers Sh2,700 for a 90 kilo bag after reviewing the price from Sh2,500 in order to woo growers to supply them with grain.
“We have so far purchased 200,000 bags of maize from farmers and we are still seeing queues as growers are still delivering to us,” said Mr Kimote.
Tanzanian and Ugandan maize have started entering the Kenyan market, raising concern that the prices of the local produce are likely to go down in the coming days.
In Trans-Nzoia and Uasin Gishu, traders have flooded the region with imports from Uganda, raising fears of low prices.
The imports have pushed down the price of the produce in the North Rift to Sh2,200 for a 90 kilo bag from Sh2,300 at farm gate initially.
The board is targeting a million bags of maize under its commercial wing by the time the crop from the last season is exhausted in the market.
Mr Kimote was speaking yesterday during a media briefing at the agency’s headquarters in Nairobi. NCPB chairman Mutea Iringo said the board has undertaken a number of reforms in order to streamline its services.
Mr Iringo said they have increased the number of aflatoxin testing labs to seven as the board seeks to ensure food safety in the country as well as buying modern dryers to assist farmers in in wet seasons.
He said the board is paying farmers after every two days once they have deposited their grain with the agency.
Whereas farmers are complaining of the influx of grain from Uganda, millers are happy that the cross-border imports have stabilised prices in the market.
“The stocks coming in from Uganda have helped to stabilise the prices in the market and we expect the cost to remain within the current levels of Sh2,800 for some time,” said Ken Nyagah, chairman of the United Grain Millers Association.
PAYE Tax Calculator
Note: The results are not exact but very close to the actual.
