An informal survey carried out by The Zimbabwean in Nkayi last week revealed that most shops had run out of mealie-meal and the few that had the product in stock were selling a 10 kg bag of mealie-meal for $8, 99, up from $5, 60 which is the recommended price.
“We have not received mealie-meal deliveries from milling companies since the beginning of January. Last week I managed to secure only three tonnes of roller mealie from a Kwekwe milling company but within minutes the mealie-meal had sold out,” said Obey Moyo, who runs a shop at Nkayi centre.
Reports of similar shortages have also been reported in Hwange and Lupane where people are now travelling to Bulawayo to buy mealie-meal.
Owners of milling companies who spoke to The Zimbabwean said they were failing to secure maize at the Grain Marketing Board and were importing maize from neighboring Zambia at exorbitant prices.
“It now costs $400 to import a tonne of maize from Zambia yet locally at the GMB it costs $295. The problem now is that GMB has run out maize and most millers are now sourcing maize elsewhere,” said a miller who refused to be named.
The chairman of the Grain Millers Association of Zimbabwe, Tafadzwa Musarara, said the recent increase in the price of maize–meal had been necessited by the shortage of maize at GMB.
Recent media reports indicate that Zambia is holding onto maize worth about $7 million due to local millers following the introduction of an export fee.
Post published in: Agriculture