Kenyans to pay more for unga, millers say

Kenyans should prepare to pay more for maize flour from next week as the price of the grain is currently unstable, millers have said.

The United Grains Millers Association say the Sh75 cap for a two-kilo packet of flour is untenable, citing scarcity and the rising cost of buying the grain.

“The Sh75 per two-kilo cap being imposed and implemented by the government, is off because we, the millers, cannot afford to sustain that, given that we buy maize at Sh2,300 to Sh2,600 per bag,” said the association’s chairman Peter Kuguru.

From as early as this coming week, Mr Kuguru said, Kenyans should brace themselves for higher flour prices, which could hit Sh100 per two-kilo pack in due course.

“The maize meal flour will go up due to the increased demand for maize across the country, and its unavailability,” he said.

The millers argued that the Sh75 cap was only sustainable when the cost was Sh1,600 per 80-kilo bag.

He said, however, that now that it is retailing for so much more, the millers have no option but to hike their prices too, which would trickle down to the consumers.

“The government itself had promised farmers prices of up to Sh3,000 for their maize, which is not currently happening, leading to farmers now hoarding the commodity, not wishing to sell it at a lower price.

"This inevitably adversely affects its availability in the market, and hence the imminent skyrocketing in maize flour prices,” said Ken Nyagah, the association’s vice-chairperson.

Drastic measures

He argued that unless drastic measures are taken by the government, there is a looming shortage of maize flour in the country.

The amount of maize the government intends to release, Mr Nyagah added, is only sufficient to sustain the market for about than two weeks, indicating how serious the situation is.

The millers recommend that the government releases the maize at the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) directly to them.

They propose a restructuring of NCPB to make it a transition station from the maize farmers to the millers themselves

In addition, the millers want government to avoid price controls on agricultural produce due to the fluctuating nature of the factors affecting pricing.

The have also requested the government to release blending crops to avoid the overreliance of a single crop.

Earlier this month, the government embarked on a crackdown on supermarkets and retailers selling the two-kilogramme packet of maize flour above Sh75.

The millers criticised the crackdown, saying Agriculture Secretary Mwangi Kiunjuri’s directive on the Sh75 price is not attainable.