Economy

Maize hoarding pushes small-scale millers to the edge

maize

Maize harvesting in Uasin Gishu. FILE PHOTO | NMG

Small-scale millers have raised concern over the acute shortage of white maize in the market despite reports indicating that Rift Valley farmers are hoarding recently harvested grains to press for better producer prices.

The millers, through their lobby United Grain Millers Association, want the government to immediately open a duty free window for imports to address the grain shortage that has kept flour prices up in January.

The lobby said despite the recent harvests, the tightening supply has pushed the price of dry white maize to Sh3,300 for a 90-kilo bag in Nairobi, adding that further upward price adjustments were in the offing.

“Consumers should brace themselves for high prices of unga starting mid-January 2020.

The government should move with speed and open the window for the importation of maize to tame further rise in the cost,” says Ken Nyagah, association’s chairperson.

On the supermarket shelves, the price of flour has remained high at Sh130 for a two-kilo packet with some brands such as Soko retailing at Sh135.

Early this week, farmers in Rift Valley appealed to the Strategic Food Reserve, an emergency unit of the National Cereals and Produce Board, to open its silos and buy maize to “save us from exploitation by middlemen”.

The SFR is said to have emptied its stores in anticipation of restocking with grains from recent stocks but a lack of cash has delayed the mission.

The maize situation, the government said, is likely to be worse this year than what was experienced in 2019.

Agriculture PS Hamadi Boga said the expected shortage this year and the current high prices will worsen, noting that imports plan should start immediately to forestall a looming crisis.

“The situation next year (2020) will be worse than what we have witnessed this season as scarcity in supply at the market is expected to start as early as February and to be safe, we might have to think of imports,” said Prof Boga in an interview last year.

The government had projected last year the production would decline by 10 million bags due to erratic weather witnessed during the planting season of 2019.

Imports may not go well with farmers who have on many occasions opposed the move, arguing that it is meant to benefit a few individuals at the expense of local processors.