State releases 4m bags maize at Sh2,300

The government will release four million bags of maize to millers at Sh2,300 a bag starting next Monday.

The four million bags will last the country for 21 days until early June.

Millers will go to the National Cereals and Produce Board depots.

He told the Star on the phone that this will help stabilise the cost of maize meal in the market.

A 2kg packet of maize meal is selling for Sh120 to Sh150 in parts of the country. A 90kg bag retails for Sh3,000 to Sh3, 600.

“We believe some large-scale farmers and traders are hoarding maize, thinking the price will increase to Sh3,600. But if we sell maize to millers at that price, the price of unga will continue shooting up," Wekesa said.

He said the SFR's mandate is not only to ensure there is maize in the market but to also cushion consumers against high prices of maize flour.

Wekesa said with a 90kg bag selling at Sh2,300, a 2kg packet of unga should sell for Sh110 to Sh115. 

The SFR board and officials from the Ministry of Agriculture met on Saturday to discuss how much maize to release and at what cost. 

Timothy Njagi, from Tegemeo Institute, said the government should look for an alternative source of maize for animal feed.

"This will ensure our stock will last longer, as animal feed production requires a lot of maize. This will reduce competition for white maize for human consumption and animal feed production," Njagi said yesterday.  

Kipkorir Menjo, director of the Kenya Farmers Association, said the government should first allow farmers with maize to sell what they have before the state releases any maize.

He said the government should also review the country's harvest projections to help in planning.

“The projected harvest of 40 million bags for 2017-18 does not add up. We are in April and already we are having a maize shortage and looking into importing maize. The harvest should last the country till June but the trend has changed,” Menjo said.

Wekesa said at any given time, the country should have a physical stock of four million bags of maize at the National Cereals and Produce Board, or the cash equivalent — about Sh4 billion.

He explained that this is supposed to cushion the country against drought or food shortage.

The NCPB has four million bags of maize at its stores. This means the government will have to start sourcing for maize to replenish the two million bags it intends to release to millers.

(Edited by V. Graham)